LAHORE: Former Pakistan skipper Azhar Ali has expressed his excitement over joining Worcestershire for County Championship this season.
The 37-year-old batter, in a video released by Worcestershire, expressed gratification over the new venture. He will be available to play all 14 County Championship matches this season.
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— Worcestershire County Cricket Club (@WorcsCCC) February 22, 2022
He replaced Australia’s Matthew Wade at the club, who got picked to play for the Indian Premier League (IPL) by the Gujarat Titans.
Paul Pridgeon, Worcestershire’s steering group chairman, said: “I think it is a fantastic signing and head coach Alex Gidman is delighted. Azhar should be available for all 14 County Championship matches. His record in Test cricket is outstanding, and he offers great experience and is of high quality.
The Pakistani batter was previously part of Somerset in 2018 and also played a vital role in Somerset’s Royal London Cup success. During his time with Somerset, he proved himself to be a quality performer on the field, whilst at the same time becoming an integral part of the club’s off-field culture.
In his seventeen First-Class matches for the club, he scored over eight hundred runs with a best of 125. He was also presented with his County Cap by Marcus Trescothick in 2019.
Over the years many legendary players from Pakistan have been a regular part of county teams. Few to name are as follows:
Abdul Hafeez Kardar (Warwickshire)
Majid Khan (Glamorgan)
Sarfaraz Nawaz (Northamptonshire)
Zaheer Abbas (Gloucestershire)
Wasim Akram (Hampshire, Lancashire)
Waqar Younis (Glamorgan, Surrey)
Javed Miandad (Glamorgan, Sussex)
Younis Khan (Nottinghamshire)
Imran Khan (Sussex, Worcestershire)
Shoaib Akhter (Durham, Somerset, Worcestershire)
The County Championship 2022 season begins on April 7 and is scheduled to end by the end of September.
