World Cup 2007; Pakistan lose to Ireland and get knocked out of the tournament. What followed was most of the squad was dropped but soon enough given a re-call. One person had been made a permanent scapegoat and that was Azhar Mahmood.
Azhar, now 37 is performing admirably in domestic cricket Worldwide. The ability of bowling upfront and then at the death was always there but the rejuvenation of promoting himself, along with the support of his Kent skipper Robert Key, from a solid lower-middle order bat to number 3 has been a masterstroke.
Azhar has recently played all forms of the game for Kent as a English qualified player. His also performed excellently for the Auckland Aces and Dhaka Gladiators in T20 cricket Worldwide. He is now making a name for himself in India, in the IPL, for Kings XI Punjab.
Azhar's absence from the Pakistan side has been now 5 years. During this time there have been several occasions when Pakistan required his nouse and experience, but with Abdul Razzaq about there was little chance of a comeback. Lately things have changed, with the ban of Pakistan's first choice opening bowlers and the lack of real depth Pakistan need a bowler who can bowl upfront to give the side a impetus to launch a platform.
The batting for the Green shirts is always a concern. As a fan, you never know what to expect from ball to ball, let alone game to game. What Azhar would give is solid batting upfront. He has a tremendous strike rate (144) with a solid average of just under 30. Such batting at the top not only gets the team going but allows others to flourish along with it.
In a recent interview with PakPassion.net, selector Saleem Jaffar said:
“Azhar would first have to play in domestic cricket in Pakistan before we can consider him for a return to the Pakistan side. As my colleague Iqbal Qasim has stated recently, domestic cricket is what we gauge performances by and anyone wanting to play for Pakistan has to perform in domestic cricket first and foremost. Past international performances and those in domestic competitions of other countries aren’t really what the selectors are basing their judgement of players upon."
Though he added that the door was not completely shut, his argument here was baseless. As stated earlier, Azhar's performances in the County cricket have been largely unmatched by any Pakistani Worldwide. He has preformed remarkably on tougher, more testing conditions. Also Azhar was called to play domestic cricket, as a Pakistani National a few years ago. Earning 30,000 Rupees a month would have been what he probably earns per game in England. There can be no surprise he had to reject that offer but always has maintained his availability to play for Pakistan.
With the World T20 in 5 months time, this is Pakistan's time of need. Pakistan need that boost, that final piece in the jigsaw that can be a match winner both with ball and bat. That person, without a doubt is Azhar for me. As much as a honest individual like Azhar needs Pakistan; his Nation needs him too. Time for the PCB to bring Azhar back.
GeoSuper