Pakistan pacer Mohammad Abbas has said that he is not ashamed that he once worked as a welder in a factory.

Abbas bagged 17 wickets during the recently concluded series against Australia and was Pakistan’s chief destroyer with the ball.

His performance was instrumental in guiding Pakistan towards a series win against their opponents.

While talking to the media on his return from the UAE, Abbas said he is not ashamed of his past, where he used to work as a welder.

“I’m not ashamed that I worked as a welder before my cricketing days,” he said. “I want to continue performing like this and give my 100% whenever I step onto the field.”

The fast-bowler made his Test debut against West Indies in Kingston during Pakistan’s tour of the Caribbean during 2017 — after couple of prolific seasons in the domestic cricket.

In the two seasons preceding his Test debut, Abbas was the highest wicket-taker in Quaid-e-Azam Trophy with 71 and 61 wickets respectively.

Abbas started playing cricket at a young age but his journey towards becoming an international cricketer was not an easy one by any stretch of the imagination.

“My life before cricket was very challenging but those struggles helped me in cricket because when I came into the sport I had become mature enough to deal with the problems,” Abbas told The Telegraph in an interview earlier this year. “After the welding and leather factory, I was an office boy in a court, registering documents for cases related to property.”

Abbas also revealed an interesting incident – which can also be deemed as life-changing — when he got called up for the district under-19 cricket.

“When I was working at the court, I got selected for district under-19 cricket. They asked me to choose between job or cricket. I cannot forget that night. But a friend, who was a lawyer too, made a case of doing both things together,” he said. “The team had to choose between me and the secretary’s son, and the decision was made through a toss. It went in my favour and I got five wickets. After that I got into the region’s academy and there was no stopping after that.”

Speaking about his role models in cricket, Abbas said: “I played Grade II cricket for two years with Asif - we used to discuss things a lot, about how to bowl and where to bowl. I feel like I learnt bowling from him. People like him, Glenn McGrath, Shaun Pollock, James Anderson — they are my ideal bowlers. I like their lines and lengths.”

Abbas became the second fastest to fifty wickets in Test cricket for Pakistan and has now picked up 59 wickets in 10 matches at a fantastic average of 15.64 which also includes four five-wicket hauls.

He isn’t part of Pakistan’s limited overs squad which means that he will have a month to prepare for Pakistan’s next Test assignment against New Zealand.