Azhar Ali confident Pakistan would find their Ben Stokes in near future  

Pakistan middle order batsman Azhar Ali was all praise for England cricket talisman Ben Stokes, and was hopeful that Pakistan would find player of this calibre in the near future.

“We all saw that innings, and we should all congratulate him on the way he won the game for England. Ben Stokes at the moment is a pretty polished all-rounder, who won the World Cup as well. So finding a player of such calibre is not an easy task even England will find it hard to find second player like him,” said Azhar Ali, while talking to media persons, at Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore.

“Pakistan does have players that can finish the game, but Ben Stokes is a great player and hopefully we would see a player like him in the near future,” added Ali.

Stokes has become the blue eyed boy of England cricket thanks to his breathtaking performance at the recently concluded ICC Cricket World Cup, and more so for his heroics at the ongoing Ashes where the single-handedly grabbed victory for his side against rivals Australia at Headingly.

Talking about his return to One Day International (ODI), Azhar said that he stands with his retirement decision, however, he would reconsider it if he deemed that Pakistan cricket needs him.

“When I made the decision to retire from limited overs cricket, I saw that the team was settled and the World Cup was nearing so I didn’t saw my future in ODI, however, it would be premature to give any answer right now… If I feel that Pakistan cricket needs me I would seriously think about it, however I have not changed my stand yet,” said Azhar.

Praising the ongoing pre-season camp that is being held under the supervision of former captain and team mate Misbah-ul-Haq, Azhar said that the coaching staff is working on rectifying our flaws.

Talking about Pakistan’s recent slump in Test format, Azhar said that the departure of senior players Misbah ul Haq and Younis Khan has left a void, which would be filled with the passage of time.

“Our recent performance in Test cricket has not been satisfactory, that is the reason behind PCB’s decisions such as improving the First Class structure. Secondly, when two of your senior players [Misbah ul Haq, Younis Khan] get retired, it does have an impact not only in your batting line but in other aspects as well.

“Hopefully, our performance would become better and more consistent with the passage of time. Unless, we don’t win outside Pakistan in places like Australia and England, our ranking would not improve, so I think we need to play on both home and away conditions,” he said.