Azhar Ali: Pakistan's bounce-back ability makes us dangerous

Azhar Ali says Mohammad Amir, who doesn't feature in Pakistan's preliminary World Cup squad, might be included in the final fifteen if he performs well against England in the ongoing ODI series.

Published : May 10, 2019 01:28 IST , Dubai

Pakistan, under Sarfraz Ahmed, won the Champions Trophy in 2017 before drawing a Test series against England a year later.
Pakistan, under Sarfraz Ahmed, won the Champions Trophy in 2017 before drawing a Test series against England a year later.
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Pakistan, under Sarfraz Ahmed, won the Champions Trophy in 2017 before drawing a Test series against England a year later.

Pakistan batsman Azhar Ali feels that its ability to bounce back from any situation makes it dangerous.

“It’s annoying for us to keep being unpredictable, but it’s true. We know we can bounce back from anywhere and that makes us dangerous. We have done well in World Cups, even though no-one rates us that highly in the build-up. We always produce good performances so hopefully this will be a special one,” Azhar told ICC during the World Cup Trophy Tour.

Ali, who announced his retirement from ODI cricket last year, also addressed the speculation regarding Mohammad Amir, saying that he might feature in the final group of 15-member World Cup squad if he performs well against England.

“It’s up to the selectors but Amir is definitely a very good bowler. He’s lacked form in a few ODIs and didn’t perform up to his potential, but we all know he’s world—class. It’s up to the management and selectors to decide whether he’s up to it or not. If he performs well against England, he might just get in the squad,” Ali said.

Moreover, Ali expressed that Pakistan has played a lot of cricket in England in the recent past and it will benefit it a lot in the World Cup. However, he feels all the teams have the potential to lift the World Cup.

“We always enjoy playing in England and have played a lot of cricket in England in the recent past. These five ODIs will help us as well. I’m looking forward to the summer, hopefully we can lift the cup,” Ali said.

“Wherever you’re playing, if you have information and experience of playing in the conditions. It will benefit Pakistan a lot. But all ten teams have potential to win games and we’ll have to see what kind of capability they have,” he added.

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