Mohammad Hafeez thanks wife and friends after notching up a ton on Test comeback

Pakistan looked a far better side on the opening day of their first Test against Australia in Dubai as they ended the day at 255 for 3 after winning the toss. Veteran all-rounder Mohammad Hafeez slammed his 10th century, marking a special comeback to the national side after a low phase in his career.

This is Pakistan’s first international assignment after the shocking performance in Asia Cup last month and Sarfraz Ahmed’s side put up a good show with the bat against a team placed four spots higher than they are.

The attention seeker of the day was undoubtedly Hafeez who was playing in a Test since August 2016 when Pakistan toured England. He gave Pakistan a solid start by putting up 205 runs for the first wicket with Imam-ul-Haq (76) and fell in the 70th over of the day when he was trapped leg before by pacer Peter Siddle.

It was a special moment for the player who saw a low in his career in recent times and was also overlooked for the Asia Cup even when Pakistan lacked depth in their ranks. He got no game in Pakistan’s ODI series against Zimbabwe in July and there were reports of controversy surfacing around him showing his discontent.

Wasn’t mentally ready after getting overlooked for Asia Cup

But Mohammad Hafeez, a veteran of 51 Tests, 200 ODIs and 83 T20Is, was back on Sunday. He said after the day’s play, “When I was not selected for the Asia Cup, I wasn’t mentally ready for that. It was at this point that I could have taken some incorrect steps but my wife and some of my friends stopped me.”

Pakistan’s foreign coach Mickey Arthur had said earlier this year that it was difficult to accommodate Hafeez in his plan only as a batsman. It was also reported that though chief selector Inzamam-ul-Haq is in favour of including him in the national side but could not because of the coach. However, he said that Hafeez features very much in Pakistan’s World Cup plans and his century in the Dubai Test will make his position even stronger.

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