Shadab’s future looks bright, says Sarfraz

Pakistan T20I captain praises leggie for match-winning performance against Windies

Pakistan limited-overs captain Sarfraz Ahmed hopes that leg-spinner Shadab Khan will achieve a lot more in the future after bagging the man-of-the-match award in his first-ever appearance for the national team.

Shadab, 18, on Sunday accounted for three Windies batsmen in the first of the four-match T20I series giving away only seven runs in his four overs. Pakistan then chased the 112-run target with six wickets in hand courtesy veteran all-rounder Shoaib Malik’s solid 38 off 29.

Sarfraz said in the video message for the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB): “The first match of any series is important and thanks to Almighty we won it.”

The wicketkeeper-batsman then admired his bowlers’ performance. “I would like to give credit to the bowlers. Imad [Wasim] gave us a great start, then Shadab, followed by our pacers Wahab [Riaz] and Hasan [Ali] who bowled really well. Especially Wahab, the two overs he bowled against the wind, it was quite difficult to bowl in those conditions.”

The 29-year-old then explained what it means for the young leggie Shadab, to perform so well in his debut match. “The way Shadab bowled, it was his first match and he deserves a lot of praise for that. I think it would be a big day for him and his family because he represented Pakistan today for the first time and was the man of the match. I congratulate him and his family.”

Sarfraz said Shadab’s debut performance was a sign that a lot more can be expected from the youngster. “This is a good sign for his career. He bowled superbly in the first match he played and helped Pakistan bag a win with his leg-spin. I am hopeful that he will achieve much more in the future.”

Pakistan, who lead the four-match T20I series 1-0, will play the second T20I against West Indies on Thursday.

The T20I series will be followed by three ODIs and as many Tests.

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