Not Virat Kohli As Pakistan Sensation Haider Ali Names Another India Star As His Idol

Pakistan’s latest batting sensation Haider Ali is garnering attention from all over and for all the right reasons. The 19-year old first hogged the limelight when he impressed in this year’s Pakistan Super League. He became the youngest player to score a fifty in the PSL.

In 9 games that he played for Peshawar Zalmi, Haider Ali scored 239 runs at an average of almost 30, but it was his strike-rate of 158.27 that caught everyone’s attention.  His 27-ball 47 saved Zalmi from embarrassment against Multan Sultans while his stunning 69 from number five against Lahore Qalandars was one of the knocks of the tournament so far.

He had also played a knock of 34 off just 12 balls against Qalandars. And while he is yet to play international cricket, he has already started drawing comparisons with the great Virat Kohli and Pakistan batting mainstay Babar Azam. However, Haider Ali has revealed that his idol is not Kohli or Babar but India opening batsman Rohit Sharma.

“My idol is Rohit Sharma. The best thing about him is his strike rate and I want that in my game,” said the 19-year-old Haider Ali in a video with Cricket Pakistan.

Before impressing in the PSL, he had also impressed in Pakistan’s domestic circuit. The right-handed batsman finished his maiden first-class season with 645 runs at an average of just under 50. In the final against Central Punjab, Haider struck 134 in a losing cause against an attack that featured four players that have played Test cricket for Pakistan.

He enjoyed similar success for a Pakistan Emerging Team XI in the Asian Cricket Council Emerging Teams Cup competition in late 2019 that Pakistan went on to win. Haider Ali was also a part of the Pakistan U19 team that made it to the semifinal of this year’s ICC U19 World Cup. He had scored a fighting fifty in the semifinal against India.

Also Read: Mohammad Hafeez To Retire From International Cricket After T20 World Cup