Rohit Sharma is a match-winner, he is my role model: Haider Ali

Haider Ali, the young Pakistan batsman, has named Rohit Sharma, the Indian T20I and ODI vice-captain as his role model. The 19-year-old was recently picked in Pakistan’s 29-member squad for the Tests and T20Is in England, starting July 30. Going forward, Haider wishes to emulate Rohit, taking his team to brisk starts and also wants to be a clean striker of the leather.

Rohit has flourished in the last seven years or so, especially after being promoted as the opener. He has the highest individual ODI score of 264 and four T20I centuries as well. Having scored over 14,000 runs at the highest level, Rohit has carved a niche for himself.

Haider reckons that Sharma is a versatile batsman, who can be equally effective in all the three formats. “As far as role models are concerned, mine is Rohit Sharma,” Haider was quoted as saying in a video press conference.

He finishes the game off for his side: Haider Ali

“I really like him as a player, and want to give the side an aggressive start at the top, and hit the ball cleanly like him. He is a man for all three formats, and he can adapt his game to all three formats,” Haider mentioned.

Rohit has three ODI double tons to his name and quite a few scores in the 150s, 160s and 170s. After reaching his hundred, Sharma generally carries on and scores big. Haider is impressed by how Rohit builds his innings and how he carries his team through.

“And the thing I like best is when he crosses 50, he moves on to a 100, and then he’s thinking of 150, and even 200. That’s what I want to do: to think about getting big scores, and when I get there, aim for even bigger ones. He finishes the game off for his side, and is a real match-winner,” he added.

Haider was one of Pakistan’s star batters in the U19 World Cup earlier this year in South Africa. Thereafter, he got to play for the Peshawar Zalmi in the 2020 edition of the Pakistan Super League (PSL). There he managed to grab the limelight and also rubbed shoulders with the likes of Shoaib Malik, Kamran Akmal and Wahab Riaz.