A few bad innings don’t make Fakhar Zaman a bad player: Inzamam-ul-Haq

Not long ago was he the blue-eyed boy of Pakistan cricket. Having slammed a double hundred in ODIs and also completing 1,000 runs in the format faster than anybody else, Fakhar Zaman looked to be an answer to his side’s opening woes. But not anymore. Two months after that memorable Zimbabwe tour, the 28-year-old batsman is facing tough questions.

The left-hander could manage just 56 runs in five innings in the recently concluded Asia Cup at a poor average of 11.20. In the two games against arch-rivals India, he scored 0 and 31 which was a disappointment for the Pakistani fans who had hoped big from him after the match-winning century against the same opposition in the final of the Champions Trophy last year.

Inzamam stands behind Zaman

However, as criticism started flying in for the batsman, Pakistan’s chief national selector Inzamam-ul-Haq came out to defend the player saying a couple of bad innings did not mean that Pakistan would have to find a replacement for him. “Fakhar Zaman is a big player and a couple of bad innings doesn’t mean that we have to replace a player that has performed well for us in the recent past,” he was quoted as saying by Pak Passion.

Zaman was criticised as well as ridiculed for the manner in which he got out in the second game against India when he tried a hopeless “sweep slog” against Kuldeep Yadav to find himself losing balance and lying before the wickets and trapped leg before. His shot was called irresponsible as he was batting well at 31 off 44 balls.

The youngster also failed to deliver in the crunch game against Bangladesh which Pakistan needed to win to make the final. Chasing a moderate target of 240, the southpaw got out in the very first over after scoring just one run. However, that he is still a popular player with his country’s cricket board was evident when he was promoted to the platinum category in the Pakistan Super League (PSL) despite his poor performance in Asia Cup.

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