Inzamam-ul-Haq Defends Fakhar Zaman After Opener's Dismal Asia Cup Campaign

Former Pakistan skipper and current chief selector Inzamam-ul-Haq has leapt in defence of underperforming Fakhar Zaman.

Fakhar Zaman was Pakistan’s blue-eyed boy not very long ago. The attacking opener had not looked back since scoring a century against India in the Champions Trophy final last year. In no time, he cemented his place in the team and also became the batting mainstay.

Before coming to Asia Cup, he crossed the 1,000-run mark in ODIs in just 18 innings. During the tour of Zimbabwe, he became the first Pakistani cricketer to score a double century in ODIs.  He had scored 515 in the series – the second-most by any batsman in a bilateral series. He was dismissed only twice and averaged an incredible 257.50. The impressive performance had helped him break a plethora of records.

Inzamam-ul-Haq Defends Fakhar Zaman After Opener's Dismal Asia Cup Campaign
Inzamam-ul-Haq has thrown his support behind Fakhar Zaman (Credits: AFP)

However, he failed to deliver in the recently-concluded Asia Cup. Zaman failed to provide his usual freewheeling. He began the tournament with a 24-run knock against Hong Kong. In the following two games against India and Afghanistan, he could not open his account. Knocks of 31 and 1 against India and do-or-die clash against Bangladesh brought an end to his as well as Pakistan’s disappointing campaign in the Asia Cup.

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Not surprisingly, Zaman is facing the heat from several quarters for his dismal show in the competition. However, Pakistan’s chief national selector Inzamam-ul-Haq has thrown his support behind the batsman. Inzamam also made it clear that Pakistan have no intentions of dropping Zaman due to his Asia Cup-struggles.

“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.

Inzamam-ul-Haq Defends Fakhar Zaman After Opener's Dismal Asia Cup Campaign
Fakhar Zaman managed just 56 runs in the Asia Cup (Credits: AFP)

Well, Zaman will have a chance to rediscover his form when Pakistan take on Australia in a three-match T20I series later this month.

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