Mohammad Wasim Jr. expresses desire to represent Pakistan in all formats

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Mohammad Wasim Jr. has expressed his desire to represent Pakistan across all three formats and that too, as an all-rounder.

In an exclusive interview with Cricket Pakistan, the youngster revealed his desire to transform himself as an all-rounder amongst other things.

Earlier, Islamabad United captain Shadab Khan also voiced his opinion that the spectators are yet to see the best of Wasim Jr. as he hasn’t had the opportunity to impress everyone with the bat.

“I want to represent Pakistan as an all-rounder in all three formats. I am currently trying my utmost best and hopefully, things will pan out.”

Revealing his favorite all-rounders, Wasim named one from Pakistan and one from England.

“From Pakistan, my favorite all-rounder is definitely [Abdul] Razzaq bhai and when it comes to players from abroad, I really like Ben Stokes,” Wasim said.

Mohammad Wasim was included in Islamabad United’s side as an Emerging player in the previous edition of Pakistan Super League (PSL). In PSL 7 draft, he was picked in the Gold category.

Speaking about United’s backroom culture, Wasim said: “Islamabad United is like a family and everyone extends their support; be it the managers, players, or any other individual related to the franchise.”

“Everyone is like a family but I get along very well with Shadab bhai,” he further added.

Islamabad United have a number of international superstars such as Shadab Khan, Faheem Ashraf, and Hasan Ali. Mohammad Wasim claimed that he has learned a lot from these players as they have a lot of international exposure.

“I really like bowling alongside Hasan bhai and Faheem bhai because they are always giving you tips on how the wicket is behaving and what I can do to take wickets or restrict the batters,” Wasim revealed.

Hailing from North Waziristan, not many players have made it to the international stage as Mohammad Wasim has. The youngster explained how he managed to get such recognition and named Islamabad United as one of the key factors.

“Every cricketer typically starts with tape-ball cricket and it was the same with me. There were not many facilities, which is why I shifted to Peshawar. I played cricket there and managed to represent Pakistan on the U-19 level. After that, Islamabad United picked me as an Emerging player and from then onward, things were rather straightforward,” explained Wasim.

Wasim further appealed to the PCB to create facilities in areas such as his hometown to groom talented players from those regions.

“There is a lot of talent in Pakistan and I want to appeal to the PCB to build performance camps in areas such as Waziristan. For me, I only started playing hard-ball cricket when I shifted to Peshawar because there were no hard-ball facilities or grounds there,” Wasim added.

The youngster revealed that his parents did not support his decision to play cricket in the beginning but warmed up to the idea once he started getting more success.

“My parents did not support me in the start if I am being honest. It is very difficult for people who belong to areas like Waziristan to make it to the international stage. But I kept trying and once I was selected for Pakistan U-19, that is when their mentality changed,” he said.