KARACHI: Fast-rising Pakistani all-rounder Sohail Tanveer said Thursday he was looking forward to playing Twenty20 cricket in Australia as a way to gain valuable match experience. The 24-year-old will fly out next week on a short five-match contract for South Australia after being cleared to play by the Pakistan Cricket Board.
“It is a great honour for me,” Tanveer told in an interview to a news agency. “Not many international players have played in Australian domestic cricket and this opportunity will help me to learn and progress toward my goal of being a top class all-rounder.”
Tanveer is expected to replace his Pakistan teammate Younus Khan, who played for South Australia in the current Sheffield Shield season.
The left-arm paceman has taken big strides at the international level after replacing the troubled Shoaib Akhtar on the Pakistan squad for the Twenty20 World Cup in South Africa last year.
Akhtar was expelled from the team after hitting team-mate Mohammad Asif with a bat just days before the event.
Tanveer played impressively in Indian Premier League competition earlier this year, finishing as the leading wicket taker with 22.
He said he hoped his short stint Down Under would help him get used to Australian pitches ahead of Pakistan’s three-Test tour there set for 2009.
“A lot of people say that it’s tough to bowl in Australia, so I will have my chance to learn how to bowl there. This will also help me when I become part of the Pakistan team which will tour Australia next year,” he said.
Tanveer said he had also been approached by a few English county sides, but remained committed to representing his country.
“At the moment the top priority is to play for Pakistan, but in between if I get a chance, I will also play in county cricket, which is also a good learning process,” he said.
this news published by www.apakistannews.com
