by Saj Sadiq

 

16th February 2010

 

PIA medium fast bowler Anwar Ali is a name that has been on the lips of many a Pakistani cricket fan for quite some time now. An Under 19 World Champion, Anwar was seen as a cricketer with a very bright future.

However things always dont turn out the way you would expect and Anwar has only been given a solitary chance at international level, and that was in a Twenty/20 encounter against Zimbabwe in October 2008, when his PIA team mate Shoaib Malik was skipper.

22 year old Anwar has been a consistent perfomer at domestic level and also performed admirably during the Pakistan "A" tour of Kenya and Zimbabwe in 2008. Recently his form has been of a high standard and his cricket is showing signs of maturity.

Anwar's omission from the Pakistan "A" squad that are currently in the United Arab Emirates squaring up against The England Lions is quite mystifying and rather baffling. In fact one could say he should have been one of the first names on the squad list. Instead Ali was named as one of the reserve players by the selectors.

Speaking earlier today to PakPassion.net from Bahawalpur, Anwar stated that there wasn't much he could do about the non selection, other than to carry on the improvement in his game and to try and catch the attention of the selectors with his domestic performances.

"When the Pakistan "A" squad was announced, I was named as a reserve. We then played 4 matches in Lahore between the "A" side and the reserves. The matches consisted of two twenty/20s and two fifty over matches and I was the leading wicket taker with 9 wickets in total in those matches and impressed all the coaches".

Anwar who has started the RBS 50 over competition in fine form for PIA continued "Yes I was surprised at my omission from the "A" squad, but all I can do is to keep performing to the best of my ability and hope that the selectors take note of my achievments and form".

Ali may yet be called up to the UAE after both Mohammad Talha and Wahab Riaz were selected for the Pakistan senior team squad to play against England in two Twenty/20 internationals later this week. "I've heard that Talha and Wahab have been called up, so I'm hoping that the "A" side will need some backup to their squad and that they call me up to fill the void in the "A" squad.

Ali enjoyed a very successful season in English League cricket for Lancashire club Colne and was the leading wicket taker in the Lancashire Premier League last season. "I really enjoyed it at Colne and wil be back there this coming season also. The plan is to get to England by the end of March if all my immigration papers go through as I want to do the ECB Level 2 coaching qualification when I am in England this time around.

The Pakistan "A" squad have lost the twenty/20 series two-one to the England Lions, but will be looking for revenge in the three 50 over matches.