Taufeeq Umar geared up for Test recall

‘Hard working’ batsman hopes to attract selectors’ attention.

KARACHI: Discarded Test batsman Taufeeq Umar is hoping to be second time lucky by receiving a call for the Test series against Sri Lanka – as he was overlooked for the one against South Africa – after scoring a century in his last President’s Trophy match for SNGPL.

Umar scored an unbeaten 128 and 63 against PTV, helping his side to an important win. The knocks have reminded the selectors of his presence and the batsman claimed that his current form plus his track record against Sri Lanka in Test cricket justifies a recall.

“I’m doing as much hard work as I can, but it’s now on the selection committee whether they select me or not,” Umar told The Express Tribune. “What I can do is perform well in domestic cricket.”

“My record against Sri Lanka is pretty good too and the last time we played them in the UAE I scored a double century against them as well.”

The 32-year-old left-hander has scored 2943 runs in 43 Tests at a relatively decent average of 38.72.

The southpaw has scored seven centuries and 14 half-centuries, with the 236 against the Sri Lankans his highest score in the format.

Against the Islanders, Umar has played seven Tests and scored 508 runs with a century and a fifty while his average against them is 39.07.

In the ongoing President’s Trophy, he has accumulated 254 runs from three first-class matches with a healthy average of 50.80.

“The track record of any player against a particular opponent or in specific conditions should be taken into consideration.” he added.

Meanwhile, the Lahore batsman feels that there needs to be proper communication between the selectors and the players who are being dropped or overlooked, so that the player would understand what he needs to do in order to stake his claim in the international side.

“Sadly there is no communication between the selectors and players, which is why a comeback becomes even harder. If a player knows what the selectors want than he can certainly do his best to achieve the target.”

Published in The Express Tribune, December 10^th, 2013.

Like Sports on Facebook, follow @ETribuneSports on Twitter to stay informed and join in the conversation.