Samiullah Niazi rues lack of quality pitches in domestic cricket

Player of Quaid-e-Azam trophy final requests PCB to prepare better ones

SNGPL left-arm pacer Samiullah Niazi believes the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) needs to improve the quality of pitches in the premier domestic four-day tournament Quaid-e-Azam Trophy.

Samiullah, who bagged an 8-62 in the final to guide his team to victory in the final and played a pivotal role in SNGPL’s victorious campaign, says pitches should be allowed to breathe before the next match is played on them during the season.

When asked to comment on the standards followed in the domestic circuit, Samiullah told PakPassion: “First of all, let me say that this is the toughest standard of cricket in Pakistan and there is nothing easy about first-class cricket at all. To succeed at this level requires immense dedication, skills, as well as fitness. So, the standard is world-class.”

He continued by ruing the quality of pitches in the domestic tournament. “However, I have to make a humble request to the PCB regarding the pitches used in the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy. At the moment the pitches in Pakistan are not ideal for high-quality cricket. It appears that our pitches have a lot more moisture than is expected on day one of a game. In my view, this is because a two-day gap between four-day games is not enough. It doesn’t give the groundsman enough time to prepare the pitch for the next match. If this gap is increased, then some degree of equality can be achieved between bat and ball.”

’Want to make a comeback for Pakistan’

Samiullah has represented Pakistan in only two ODIs when he played against Zimbabwe in Karachi and Hyderabad back in 2008.

He wasn’t able to bag any wickets in his 20 overs and hence was dropped, but his 500 first-class wickets in 111 first-class matches raise the point that maybe he should’ve been given another chance and he believes, at age 35, that he will be.

“I have always believed that it is my job to perform to the best of my abilities and it’s the job of the selectors to select me if they feel that I have done well enough,” says Samiullah. “I may not have played for Pakistan as much as I wanted to, but I am not disappointed about it. What I do know is that the Almighty always rewards those who don’t give up and my plan is to continue working hard and to make a comeback for Pakistan.”