All posts tagged: Saim

Pakistan coach Mike Hesson says excluding Babar Azam, Saim Ayub is about building for 2027 ODI World Cup

Pakistan coach Mike Hesson says excluding Babar Azam, Saim Ayub is about building for 2027 ODI World Cup

Published by Webster

3 min readUpdated: Mar 9, 2026 10:20 PM IST Days after the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) made a bold move by dropping big names like Babar Azam, Saim Ayub, and Naseem Shah from the ODI series against Bangladesh, Pakistan’s white-ball coach Mike Hesson said that the exclusion of these senior players should not be considered as punishment for non-performance in the recently concluded ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 in India and Sri Lanka. “I wouldn’t say anyone was dropped. We just see this series as an opportunity to give these promising players a chance to prove themselves,” Hesson was quoted as saying by PTI. Hesson insisted that Pakistan have had scant opportunities to test young, promising talent. He said with the ODI World Cup scheduled for next year, they wanted to see how these players respond. “Sahabzada Farhan has forced himself into the ODI squad because of his exceptional performances in T20s, and young players like Shamyl Hussain or Maaz Sadaqat have been doing well in domestic cricket and junior sides. The series will …

‘Sabke laadle hain’: Basit Ali slams Saim Ayub’s ‘special treatment’ after Jofra Archer exposes opener’s weakness | Cricket News

‘Sabke laadle hain’: Basit Ali slams Saim Ayub’s ‘special treatment’ after Jofra Archer exposes opener’s weakness | Cricket News

Published by Webster

4 min readFeb 25, 2026 02:27 PM IST With his knock of seven runs against England in Pakistan’s two-wicket loss against England in the Super 8 encounter at Pallekele in the T20 World Cup on Tuesday, Pakistani opener Saim Ayub once again failed to get past a score of 30 runs in this T20 World Cup. The 23-year-old opener currently has a tally of 70 at an average of 14.00 in the event so far and the opener fell trying to a play a pull shot off the bowling of England pacer Jofra Archer on Tuesday. Former Pakistani player Basit Ali took a jibe at Ayub after his latest failure, branding the opener a ‘laadla’ (favourite) of the management. His dismissal against England meant that the 23-year-old opener fell on a single digit score for the 15th time in the last one year in T20Is. Basit Ali’s jibe came after Shoaib Malik spoke about Ayub getting pout to a 145kph ball bowled by Jofra Archer in the third over of Pakistan’s innings. Ali claimed that …

Saim Ayub lbw Jasprit Bumrah: The India-Pak short story with a twist that will worry South Africa | Cricket News

Saim Ayub lbw Jasprit Bumrah: The India-Pak short story with a twist that will worry South Africa | Cricket News

Published by Webster

Not just his batsmanship, even the primal human instinct to dodge sudden danger failed Saim Ayub. If cricket, like gymnastics, had judges, they would be flashing 10s at Jasprit Bumrah’s perfect yorker to Saim. That dismissal from the India-Pakistan game in Colombo would soon become the most-watched, most-memed and most-layered clip of the World T20 so far. Such was the speed and precision of the Bumrah missile that it didn’t give the left-handed Pakistan opener time to even pull out his front-leg from harm’s way. As for Saim’s bat, it had barely reached his knees in its journey from shoulder-level to the feet. Saim lbw Bumrah – wasn’t just another wicket on the scoreboard, it was more. It was a short story with a past, subplots, intrigue, consequences and a twist at the end. There was something in it for everyone. For Pakistan, the Bumrah yorker was a brutal reminder to the widening gap in the cricket quality of the two nations that were once equals. Saim, 24, is the highest paid Pakistan T20 league …

Ishan flips momentum, Saim Ayub uses flight & turn, Bumrah-Hardik as India rout Pakistan by biggest margin | Cricket News

Ishan flips momentum, Saim Ayub uses flight & turn, Bumrah-Hardik as India rout Pakistan by biggest margin | Cricket News

Published by Webster

A match that saw so much happen before even a ball was bowled ended in the most predictable manner. For all the build-up, the rhetoric and the theatre that inevitably accompany an India–Pakistan clash, the competitive edge in this rivalry has dulled in recent years. Sunday was no exception. India wobbled briefly, but the stutter was fleeting. Ishan Kishan responded with an innings of rare authority, counterattacking on a surface that grew increasingly tacky with every passing over. If Kishan tilted the contest with the bat, the bowlers slammed it shut. For much of the late 20th century, Pakistan’s pride lay in the variety and menace of their attack – a conveyor belt of fast bowlers and crafty spinners. In recent years, that historical narrative has felt inverted. India’s attack was sharper, more disciplined and infinitely more adaptable to conditions. What was once a combative rivalry now increasingly resembles a lesson in modern white-ball precision. BIGGEST WIN FOR INDIA OVER PAKISTAN IN T20Is (61 runs)! 🤯 With that, they make it 8-1 in #INDvPAK in …

Why Ajantha Mendis backs Abrar Ahmed and Saim Ayub at Premadasa

Why Ajantha Mendis backs Abrar Ahmed and Saim Ayub at Premadasa

Published by Webster

In the practice nets at Premadasa stadium at the T20 World Cup, two ropes lie stretched across the pitch, perfectly aligned with off and leg stump. Between them, a left-handed batsman shuffles—forward, back, across—while Pakistan’s spinners hunt for perfection. The drill is simple: keep the ball within those tramlines until deception becomes instinct, until mystery becomes muscle memory. This is where Abrar Ahmed and Saim Ayub are forging their weapons for Sunday’s showdown against India at the Premadasa. And in a contest historically defined by Pakistan’s pace against Indian batting prowess, this match promises something entirely different—a battle won or lost in the flick of a wrist, the skid of a carrom ball. The OG speaks Ajantha Mendis remembers. Two decades ago, the Sri Lankan was cricket’s original illusionist, the godfather of mystery carrom-ball spin who bamboozled India with deliveries that seemed to defy physics itself. He took 116 wickets at the Premadasa, turning this very ground into his theatre of deception. When he speaks about the carrom ball—his carrom ball—there’s the quiet authority of …

Saim Ayub Fifty, Abrar’s four-Fer Guides Pakistan to ODI Series Win Over South Africa

Saim Ayub Fifty, Abrar’s four-Fer Guides Pakistan to ODI Series Win Over South Africa

Published by Webster

After a four-for from Abrar Ahmed and a fifty from Saim Ayub, Pakistan secured a seven-wicket victory in the final ODI game against South Africa, played on November 08 at Iqbal Stadium, Faisalabad. By this win, Pakistan won their first-ever ODI series against South Africa at home and have continuously won four of the last five ODI series against the Proteas. Pakistan bowlers did put up an impressive performance, bowling out South Africa for 143 runs. South Africa’s Lhuan-dre Pretorius and de Kock opened the innings while Shaheen Afridi opened the bowling attack. The opening duo made a decent start, scoring 72 runs for the first wicket. Dre-Pretorius scored 39 runs before being dismissed by Salman Agha. Agha bagged his second wicket of Tony de Zorzi for 2 runs, while de Kock went on to smash a fifty. With his dismissal for 53 runs, South Africa’s batting line-up saw a batting collapse where they lost the remaining seven wickets for 37 runs. Apart from the openers, Breetzke and Nqabayomzi Peter were the only double-digit scorers, …

Saim Ayub Returns to Pakistan Squad For Bangladesh T20Is

Saim Ayub Returns to Pakistan Squad For Bangladesh T20Is

Published by Webster

The star Saim Ayub has returned to the Pakistan Squad for the upcoming three-match T20I series against Bangladesh later this month. Meanwhile, Sahibzada Farhan has been rewarded with a recall in the ongoing PSL 2025. Ayub has been out of action since picking an injury in South Africa in January during the test series. He missed the cricket between that series and Champions Trophy, and ongoing PSL. His comeback despite average returns for Peshawar Zalmi, 174 runs in ten innings at an average of 17.40 and a strike rate of 125.17. Hasan was in the team last in May 2024, and has now forced his way back with 15 wickets in the PSL for Karachi Kings, which places his joint second with Abrar Ahmed, and Jason Holder, and only behind Abbas Afridi who has 17 wickets. Meanwhile, Farhan’s impressive campaign in PSL 2025 forced the selectors to recall him after last playing a T20I in December last year. Pakistan Cricket Team (image: X) He is currently the PSL’s top scorer with 394 runs at a …

Pakistan Opener Saim Ayub Completes Rehabilitation For Ankle Injury

Pakistan Opener Saim Ayub Completes Rehabilitation For Ankle Injury

Published by Webster

File photo of Saim Ayub.© AFP Pakistan’s young opener Saim Ayub has completed his rehabilitation for an ankle injury and will undergo a fitness test before he is cleared to play in the Pakistan Super League beginning April 11. According to a source in the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), Saim has returned to Lahore after completing his rehab in London under the supervision of sports injuries specialists in the UK. “He has to now undergo some fitness tests in Lahore before he is cleared to take part in the PSL,” the source said. He added if the PCB medical panel felt it would be better to give Saim more rest before he returns to cricket, then that will be done regardless of the PSL. Saim, who made a big impact on the tours of Australia, Zimbabwe and South Africa by scoring two hundreds in the ODI series in South Africa, fractured his ankle while fielding on the boundary on day one of the second Test in January. The PCB then sent him to …

‘Does he play for India’: A dejected Hasan Ali questions PCB over biases in injury management and giving VVIP treatment to Saim Ayub | Cricket News

‘Does he play for India’: A dejected Hasan Ali questions PCB over biases in injury management and giving VVIP treatment to Saim Ayub | Cricket News

Published by Webster

2017 Champions Trophy player of the tournament, Hasan Ali, has come out attacking Pakistan Cricket Board management over the preferential treatment given to him during his injury and giving VVIP treatment to young opener Saim Ayub. While Ayub, who was injured while playing against South Africa in January, underwent an operation in England and is recovering, Ali spent more than 16 months in rehabilitation in 2020 and has questioned the partial attitude of PCB against players. “Saim Ayub is injured. He is a player of Pakistan team. I was not a player of the Pakistan team in 2020? If any other Pakistani player gets injured, he is not part of the team? Does he play for India? They are giving VVIP treatment to Saim Ayub. If anybody else gets injured, will they do the same for him? May god give good health to Saim. But when he gets injured again, will he get the same treatment? They will not give. We have to rectify this,” Hasan Ali told the podcast Ultra Edge. Story continues below this ad …

From Jasprit Bumrah to Saim Ayub

From Jasprit Bumrah to Saim Ayub

Published by Webster

Marcus Stoinis (Australia) – Retired from ODI cricket Mitchell Starc (Australia) – Personal Reasons (also nursing ankle injury) Also Read: Champions Trophy 2025 Tickets Booking Link with Online Price ICC Champions Trophy 2025 Squads Following are the complete Champions Trophy 2025 squad players list along with their roles. England Champions Trophy Squad Jos Buttler (c, wk), Jofra Archer, Gus Atkinson, Jacob Bethell, Harry Brook, Brydon Carse, Ben Duckett, Jamie Overton, Jamie Smith (wk), Liam Livingstone, Adil Rashid, Joe Root, Saqib Mahmood, Phil Salt (wk), Mark Wood New Zealand Champions Trophy Squad Mitchell Santner (capt), Michael Bracewell, Mark Chapman, Devon Conway, Lockie Ferguson, Matt Henry, Tom Latham, Daryl Mitchell, Will O’Rourke, Glenn Phillips, Rachin Ravindra, Jacob Duffy, Nathan Smith, Kane Williamson, Will Young Bangladesh Champions Trophy Squad Najmul Hossain (c), Tanzid Hasan Tamim, Soumya Sarkar, Parvez Hossain Emon, Mushfiqur Rahim, Tawhid Hridoy, Mahmudullah, Mehidy Hasan, Jaker Ali Anik, Rishad Hossain, Nasum Ahmed, Tanzim Hasan Sakib, Nahid Rana, Taskin Ahmed, Mustafizur Rahman South Africa Champions Trophy Squad Temba Bavuma (c), Tony de Zorzi, Marco Jansen, Heinrich Klaasen, …