KARACHI: Having made the Pakistan One-day International side in September last year, Salman Ali Agha has fitted in like the last missing piece of the puzzle.

The right-handed batter, who isn’t as box office like his other superstar team-mates, has cemented his place in the national team as a specialist number six batter as well as handy off-spinner just in time ahead of the ODI World Cup.

Salman’s success is down to his cleverness as a batter at a position which requires a lot of skill and a demonstration of that was on show during the last two matches of Pakistan’s recent five-match ODI series against New Zealand.

The 29-year-old, who has fought his way through a tough domestic cricket system to Pakistan colours, scored two half-centuries on the trot in the said games and has all but earned a ticket to the 50-over showpiece in India.

“I wanted to perform well enough [in the New Zealand series] to cement my place in the side and get rid of any uncertainties over my future,” Salman told Dawn on Tuesday. “Thankfully, doubts on whether I’ll be make it to the World Cup or not, are not on my mind anymore. Now the focus is only on performance.”

It wouldn’t be unfair to say that the Lahore-born cricketer has been lucky for a few reasons to have earned the Pakistan ODI cap. He is a part of a side that lies third in the format’s rankings and is studded with some of the best players in the world, which has filled Salman with belief over Pakistan’s World Cup prospects.

“On paper, I believe Pakistan are one of the best sides and the favourites to win the World Cup,” he said. “All important areas are covered and all boxes are checked.”

Pakistan, however, would need more match practice ahead of the extravaganza but the uncertainties over their international cricket calendar — with the Asia Cup’s fate still hanging in balance — concern Salman, But he is not letting go of hope.

“We haven’t got many one-dayers to play and I’m sure the PCB (Pakistan Cricket Board) is trying to arrange a few for us,” he noted. “If the Asia Cup is held it will be a great platform to prepare for the World Cup.”

The new Pakistan management under team director Mickey Arthur and head coach Grant Bradburn has exercised a rotation policy for the players and has made it a point to test the team’s bench strength during the New Zealand ODIs — their only assignment so far.

The move has helped Pakistan identify where they stand ahead of the World Cup and Salman said it has saved the team from potential last-minute confusions

“We haven’t got many one-dayers coming ahead so this was the only series where we had the chance to check our bench strength, he said. “How we tried different combinations and tested the bench strength, it helped us get a fair idea on what kind of combinations we want to go into the Asia Cup and the World Cup with.

“If any player god forbid gets injured then we will have a replacement ready.”

While Salman has proved his capability with the bat, he provides utility as an off-spin bowler as well and he has a clear idea about his role with the ball.

“I play as the sixth bowler in the team and it’s a role which requires a lot of responsibility,” he observed. “Any of the main bowlers can have a bad day and I try covering it up on such days.

“If two or even one lefty is batting, I try to do well against them. I try to keep my economy rate in check and obviously when you are the sixth bowler, opponent batters try to attack, which increases the chances of getting wickets.”

While thoughts about featuring in the World Cup are unavoidable , Salman said he wanted to focus on what is to come before that. Doing otherwise, he feared, may end up proving counterproductive for him.

“To be very honest, I’m not thinking too much about the World Cup,” he revealed. “Obviously, I have it [World Cup] in the back of the mind but there’s a lot to look forward to before that. The Asia Cup, if it happens, the Sri Lanka series before that and the Afghanistan series are the challenges I’m more focused on.”

Published in Dawn, May 10th, 2023