Misbah-ul-Haq puts onus on Naseem Shah to win matches on England tour

Pakistan head coach Misbah-ul-Haq has high expectations from his team for the England tour. He has pinned hope on young lad Naseem Shah to deliver the best for the team. He believes Shah has in him what it takes to perform best at the international level. Naseem has shown good promise by picking 10 wickets in two internal squad matches at Derby.

Naseem Shah was first drafted into the national team against Australia last November. Although at 16 when he had featured very less in the first-class cricket, the selectors still believed in his potential and picked him in the national team. He proved his worth by becoming the youngest bowler to take a hat-trick in Rawalpindi during the Test against Bangladesh.

Misbah, also a former Pakistan skipper, while praising Naseem, had only good words to say. He insisted that the young gun will blaze efficiently with the ball.

“Before going to Australia, Waqar Younis and I just saw him in the Gaddafi Stadium (in Lahore) and at that time he just looked like a complete bowler. We could see the potential but now we’ve got the evidence at the international level, he has already got a hat-trick and five-fors. If you see his experience and his cricket then the sample size is too small but he’s already fulfilling his potential,” Misbah was quoted as saying in Sky Sports.

Naseem Shah is one who could win a Test match on his own, says Misbah

He also pinned his belief that Naseem can win games on his own whenever the team requires. “He is one who could win a Test match on his own so we’re looking forward to him to emerge as a very good bowler in this series,” he said.

On commenting about the preparations of the team the Pakistan legend said that his lads are match ready and he is completely satisfied by their preparation.

“We feel there is always a slight nervousness when you just play Test cricket after a long, long time, but overall in terms of preparation, I am pretty much satisfied we have covered all the areas. We are aware that England has a slight advantage but if we are alert and go 100 percent in the first Test match, that is the only way we can beat England. Otherwise, we will find ourselves in difficulty,” he said.

Misbah also put forward his views on the not-so-good record of Pakistan against England stating that previous stats don’t matter much. “These previous stats are just stats, I believe, That doesn’t guarantee you are going to do well in this series,” he insisted.