Pakistan captain Babar Azam assists Hasan Ali in returning to international cricket after the fast bowler was dropped for the one-day international series against Netherlands and the T20 Asia Cup.
“I know Hasan Ali is out of shape, but it’s not like he has anything to prove,” Babar said in Lahore on Thursday as Pakistan prepared to leave for the Netherlands.
“I support Hasan Ali because he’s a team man… domestic cricket is coming, he’ll play that and hopefully make a strong comeback.”
Pakistan meet their Dutch hosts in Rotterdam on Tuesday in the first of three ODI games.
Hasan’s indifferent form in white-ball cricket eventually forced the selectors to drop the fast bowler and include the capless pacer Naseem Shah in the white-ball format.
Hasan has played three ODIs in the last year and won just two wickets with an amazing 76.50 average. He had an underperforming Pakistan Super League in which he won nine wickets in games and proved expensive with a save rate of 10.84.
The fast bowler also did not fare well at last year’s T20 World Cup in the United Arab Emirates, taking just five wickets at an average of 41.40.
Pakistan will test their bench strength against the Netherlands in the series. Fast bowler Shaheen Afridi has a knee injury picked up in the first Test against Sri Lanka last month but will travel with the team to the Netherlands.
“We’re taking some doctors along to take care of Shaheen,” Babar said. “We look at his fitness and health over the long term. We want him to play a game against the Netherlands provided he is fit and ready for the Asian Cup.
“Our fast bowling bench strength is excellent. Now they have the opportunity to prove their skills. This is how you expand your pool.”
Rain in Lahore last week has stunted Pakistan’s preparations, leaving the team with just one training game. Babar was expecting cooler weather in Rotterdam like England and the team had simulated the conditions by training indoors at the National Cricket Academy in Lahore with the air conditioning on.
Experienced Shoaib Malik and Mohammad Hafeez will not be part of the Pakistan team for the Asia Cup, which begins on August 27 in the United Arab Emirates. Malik has not been considered for selection while Hafeez has given up international cricket.
“When older players leave the team, those who replace them have to focus,” Babar said. “Hafeez and Malik were great players and we will miss them dearly.
“Players like Asif Ali, Khushdil Shah and Iftikhar need to fill their boots. We want to give them lots of games and confidence and those players have performed well. We’re also trying to use Shadab Khan’s batting power as batting depth is now very useful in T20 cricket.”