Wicketkeeper-batsman made his debut in the PSL with Quetta Gladiators
18 January, 2023
PHOTO: ICC
Pakistan wicketkeeper-batsman Azam Khan disclosed that he used all the criticism, cold hearted trolls and harsh nicknames to boost his confidence inorder to get control of the challenges he faced in cricket because of his obese physique.
Azam Khan used to write harsh words like "aloo [potato], laddu [a sweet], haathi [Elephant], fatso and big boy" on scraps and bits of paper and posted on his wall to get encouraged to perform better.
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He made his debut in the Pakistan Super League (PSL) with Quetta Gladiators, where his father, Moin Khan, was the head coach.
"My dad was like, 'Are you mad, why are you doing this to yourself?' I said, 'This is giving me motivation'," the batter told ESPNcricinfo's Cricket Monthly.
The young talent was criticized for nepotism as it was claimed that his selection was purely and solely because of his father and not his talent.
In the fourth season of PSL played in 2019, Azam only played one game where he could only score 12 runs off 15 balls.
"People will always judge me because my father has played for Pakistan but it's not my fault I was born at his house. But after I got my chance in the PSL, people criticised me because I was overweight and said my body is not suited for the elite game of cricket," he said.
However, Azam Khan used all the negative comments to improve his game. And now franchise leagues around the world want him for his aggressive batting style and his clean and positive intent.
Azam assumed he had proved everyone wrong when he scored 59 runs from just 33 balls in the fifth edition of the HBL PSL’s opening game for the Gladiators and led them to victory. However, he was still criticized for his physique.
Azam spent the following year at the National High Performance Centre in Lahore. He was determined to loose weight and get fitter, for that he spent his time on an exercise and diet regime. He spent a lot of time improving his workout capacity in the gym. Azam’s hardwork payed off as he lost 30kg in a year.
In the sixth edition of the HBL PSL, Islamabad United bought Azam Khan from Quetta Gladiators in advance of the PSL draft in December 2021.
He showed some dazzling performance for Islamabad United in the PSL 2022 as he scored 296 runs in 11 matches with a good strike rate of 141.62 and 2 fifties.
Because of his extraordinary performance with Islamabad United, Azam was retained by the franchise in the Gold category ahead of the eight edition of PSL.
