The Pakistan squads for the forthcoming tour of England were announced on Sunday, and as you would expect with such an announcement, some players were left pleased, while others were left disappointed. Yasir Hameed, a player who has always teased fans with his batting exploits – was one who was left revived and looking forward to a rebirth of his international career.

by Saj Sadiq

22 June 2010

The Pakistan squads for the forthcoming tour of England were announced on Sunday, and as you would expect with such an announcement, some players were left pleased, while others were left disappointed. Yasir Hameed, a player who has always teased fans with his batting exploits – was one who was left revived and looking forward to a rebirth of his international career. 

Hameed played his last test match against India in December of 2007 – a lengthy period for any cricketer to be out of the reckoning. The 32 year old stylish right hander was keen to share his delight at his latest and possibly final opportunity for Pakistan

Speaking exclusively to PakPassion.net ; Hameed dedicate his latest opportunity to his mother, “I would like to dedicate my selection for the test squad to my mother. Without her prayers this would not have happened.” 

There was a moment in his career where Yasir Hameed was left on the outside, looking in. There was a gap where nothing was going right and other batsmen were forging ahead of him in the pecking order and leaving the PIA batsman without hope. In what seemed like an instant, he was asked to come back recently, “When I was asked by the selectors to go to the NCA at Lahore for training there, I was hopeful of a comeback, but I wasn't certain that I would be selected. I knew anything was possible, there was no guarantee that I would be selected just because I was at the NCA. I trained hard at the NCA and prayed that I would get another chance for Pakistan".

On his feeling after hearing about being selected he exclaimed, “I feel as if I have been released from a jail sentence after 2 and a half years of being shunned. I thought I would never be given another chance by the selectors especially given that I am now 32. I have looked after myself and feel that I am fit enough for the rigours of test cricket.” The hard work seems to have finally paid off for the batsman who had an exceptional beginning to his career with scores of 170 and 105 against Bangladesh on debut. 

Yasir Hameed’s mind was already on to the task at hand in the near future with the test series coming up. His hopes for the Pakistani team and its chances were heightened in nature as expected, “The test series against England and Australia will be tough as both teams are very strong, but I feel Pakistan can compete against both teams". 

When asked about the key factor that will make Pakistan successful he replied, “Experience will be vital against both opponents and it’s up to the experienced players like myself to stand up and be counted. The team has youngsters within the ranks and will be most certainly looking to the experience of its seniors to lead the team to victory".

Hameed has been selected alongside two other specialist openers in the test squad – Salman Butt and Imran Farhat, however given Hameed's flexibility and with the absence of Younus Khan, he may be required to bat in the problematic number three position. 

When asked about where he would prefer to bat, Hameed stated, “I will bat in any position the captain wants me to. As a team player you have to support the captain and be flexible. If they want me to open I will do that. If I am required to bat in any other position, then I will be more than happy to do that".

Pakistan begin their test campaign against Australia at Lords on 13th July. The fixture at Lords is the first of six test matches that Pakistan will play in England over the coming months.