Safaraz to be part of squad for England tour: Misbah

KARACHI: Pakistan chief selector and head coach Misbah-ul-Haq is apparently impressed by fitness of former Pakistan skipper Sarfaraz Ahmed and has said that the wicket-keeper batsman will be a part of upcoming tour of England.

Misbah praised Sarfaraz for gaining fitness and has confirmed that the player will be accompanying the team in the upcoming tour of England. Although Sarfaraz struggled with the form but the team was performing well under him in the shortest format of the game as it was the top-ranked side in T20Is when Sarfaraz was captain.

The move to sack him from all formats irked many of Sarfaraz’s fans including Quetta Gladiators’ owner Nadeem Omar who opined that Sarfaraz shouldn’t be removed from T20Is at least as the side was No 1 in the format. Pakistan has now slipped to fourth position in T20Is.

However, Misbah said that Sarfaraz needed to gather himself as he was gradually crumbling under pressure, while his performance was also on a downhill path so he needed rest and regain fitness and form. But since he has now worked on his fitness, he has been selected and will be part of the team’s next assignment.