Abbas should be part of 2019 World Cup squad: Ajmal

Former Pakistan off-spinner Saeed Ajmal believes that fast bowler Mohammad Abbas should represent Pakistan in the 2019 World Cup bearing in mind the helpful bowling conditions in England.

“He can be very handy in England, if he is picked in World Cup squad. Those conditions in England suites a bowler like him,” Ajmal said.

Ajmal is also of the opinion that Abbas should be restricted to just Test cricket — especially when playing in United Arab Emirates (UAE).

“Abbas has had a lot of success in Test cricket and he should only keep his focus in this format of the game,” he said. “This doesn’t mean that I am completely against him playing in the shorter formats but conditions in UAE are not ideal for him to play in the One-Day Internationals (ODI) or T20Is.”

Ajmal also praised Bilal Asif for picking up a six-wicket haul in the first innings of the Test match against Australia in Dubai.

“Pakistan were in desperate need of an Off-spinner and now they have one in shape of Bilal Asif,” he said.

Ajmal added: “Asif’s performance in the domestic cricket was not eye-catching.  He did not pick enough wickets in the domestic cricket and selectors had number of options available. However, they picked him and Asif proved that his selection was right. Now he needs to carry this momentum further to cement his place in the team.”

Ajmal also believes that Pakistan’s bowling lineup is the best in the world.

“With bowler like Yasir Shah and Shadab Khan are in the team, our bowling line is currently the best in the World,” he said. “We have variety of options available in our bowling that gives us edge over others.”