Abdullah says he is ready for international cricket

LAHORE: Top-order batsman Abdullah Shafique is delighted and thrilled on his selection in the national team for the upcoming limited-overs series against Zimbabwe.

Shafique scored 358 runs in 10 matches of recently-concluded National T20 Cup for Central Punjab. He scored a century on his T20 debut, becoming only the second player in history to make a century on both first-class and T20 debuts.

“I was very excited after being named in the squad for Zimbabwe series. My dream was to represent Pakistan and it will be an honour to do that,” Shafique said while talking to reporters in a virtual press conference here on Thursday.

“There is a lot of competition in the top-order but whenever I am given an opportunity, I will try to do my best,” he added.

“I will try to carry my form from the National T20 Cup into the Zimbabwe series. Although international cricket is a new experience, I have a lot of support from the team management, so I hope the transition from domestic to international cricket won’t be difficult,” he added.

Shafique named Australian batting great Ricky Ponting and Pakistan’s limited-overs skipper Babar Azam as his favourite players. “My favourite player is Ricky Ponting and I try to play like him. I liked his pull shot and high back-lift. So my favourite shots are also pull shot and cover drives,” he said.

“From Pakistan side, Babar Azam is my favourite and hopefully I will learn from him during the camp and Zimbabwe series,” he said.

He said that the National T20 it was a great platform for young players.

He further said that as his father was a former first class cricketer he has full support of his family. “My father guides me. He is my first coach. I have received great support from my family. Ours is a cricket family,” he added.