DUBAI: Hoping to represent Pakistan at the international level, Karachi King’s legbreak bowler Usama Mir believes that he has done fairly well in the ongoing Pakistan Super League (PSL) to secure his future.
“No matter what the future holds for me, I have chosen cricket and I am out here to give my everything to the game with heart. The rest is up to destiny. At least I am satisfying myself by playing cricket and I think I did fairly well to secure my future with it,” he was quoted as saying by eminent cricket website ESPN cricinfo on Friday.
The 21-year-old, who did not play first-class match since 2015 due to a back injury stated that it (injury) really let him down and it was the worst part throughout his journey so far.
“In 2016, my name was going around in the domestic circuit. I was about to tour England with the Pakistan A team when I went down in the camp. But I have recovered from my back stress and come back directly into the PSL”.
“I am happy that it’s going well and I am getting all the respect in the cricketing quarters. My family, who had been reluctant to allow me to play cricket, are the ones who motivate me to go far now. They were probably sceptical about me going into cricket as nobody believed that it had a great scope ahead. I wanted to follow my passion, and at least I am trying. Hopefully one day I will represent Pakistan,” he added.
Usama broke into Khan Research Laboratories’ T20 team for the Ramadan Cup in 2013, before making a first-class debut for them the following year. But the impression was made playing for his local team, Sialkot Stallions – a team that have dominated the national circuit with six titles – in the shorter format.
In 2015, he claimed 11 wickets at 9.54 in the Super Eight Twenty20 Cup under the leadership of Shoaib Malik. He was then picked up by Karachi Kings in the inaugural edition and retained for the second season. He has since played 29 T20s, picking up 33 wickets at 21.03, achieving a career-high this season, when he put a stop to Shahid Afridi’s heroics to seal a narrow win, before taking 3-24 as Karachi knocked defending champions Islamabad United out in theplay-off to take a step toward the final.
After off spinner Saeed Ajmal faded away, Pakistan got legspinner Yasir Shah as a readymade option to fit straight into the Test team.
However, he has not been impressive in limited-overs cricket.
The competition now appears to be between Mir and Shadab Khan-another prospective talent who has had a good PSL – who are standing in queue and knocking at the selectors’ door ahead of the West Indies series.
“To be honest, I never think about who is ahead of me or standing behind my back. I only focus on my cricket,” said Mir.
“I have never really bothered about the competition because I have a belief in myself and there isn’t any sense of insecurity. Why? Because you get distracted and start overthinking and this affects your own performance. It’s your self-belief and confidence that makes you a bigger player. I know everyone wants to play cricket and not many go on to play for the country.”
The PSL stints, according to Mir, have helped in his developmental process in cricket as well as with his lifestyle. “The best thing I found in PSL was the company of bigger players who have made their names in the world. In the first season I had Ravi Bopara, James Vince and Shakib Al Hasan, and this year we have even bigger names like Kumar Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene and Chris Gayle. Playing with them gives me a special kind of feeling and makes my confidence high. There is a lot to learn from them and my game awareness has really been enhanced at some level. I get to learn how to deal with pressure and how to react in different situations.
“After this [the PSL], when I go back to domestic cricket, I am more confident than ever and this is exactly how the PSL is going to help us,” he maintained.
