Naseem Shah hopeful of performing well against England

KARACHI: Pakistan cricket team’s fast bowler Naseem Shah is hopeful of a good contest against England in the upcoming 7-match T20I series, which starts on 20th September in Karachi.

In an exclusive interview to Geo News, the young bowler said that he is not singling out any England batter as his target because he believes that important wicket is the one that you should get when your team needs it the most. “As a bowler, I’ve to go after every batter but it is important to work according to the team’s requirement. The wicket you take when the team needs it the most holds more value than other wickets and such wickets are always special for me,” said the 19-year-old fast bowler.

Talking about England’s arrival in Pakistan after a gap of 17 years, the fast bowler said that it is a special moment for everyone and he is proud to be a part of Pakistan team that is playing this historic series. “It is always exciting to play against a top side at your home soil. I am hopeful of a good contest between the two sides. We are arriving here from the Asia Cup and are in a good form, so it will be good series,” he said.

“Several England players have played in Pakistan before, during PSL, and they know about the conditions and opponents. They’ll play according to their strength and we’ll play according to ours. We know our strengths well,” said the young pacer.

Replying to a question, the fast bowler said that as a bowler, like any other bowler in the world, he would like to be the leading wicket taker and man of the series here but the main target for him is to perform according to the team’s expectation and play a part in making your team successful.

When asked about his back-to-back sixes to help Pakistan win against Afghanistan during the Asia Cup match, the fast bowler said that it was a nail-biting contest. “I was just thinking of giving my best and leave the rest to Almighty. Allhamdolillah, I was successful in making my team win the match,” he said.

He, however, added that bowling is always his main focus and he doesn’t practice like batters in nets. “My primary job in the team is as a bowler and that remains my focus, I don’t do long session of batting in the nets like normal batters would do. But I feel I must know how to add 15-20 runs towards the end, especially when the team needs it and I do practice for that in the nets to keep myself prepared,” concluded the fast bowler.