Islamabad
Former England captain Nasser Hussain believes Pakistani skipper Azhar Ali has shown incredible mental toughness at a time when his captaincy was questioned, after his side struggled in the Test series against England.
Hussain heaped praise on Azhar’s mental toughness as he was facing criticism from all corners.
“Azhar also only made a very small alteration but it’s amazing the difference it has made in both innings of this last Test. Most of all, he has shown incredible mental toughness at a time when his captaincy has been questioned and his side have been struggling,” Hussain wrote in his column for The Daily Mail as quoted by cricketpakistan.com.pk.
Hussain also believes a slight technical change with the bat, has been beneficial for Pakistani skipper Azhar Ali, during the ongoing third Test against England in Southampton, as he scored an unbeaten century.
Azhar had been struggling for runs during the series and was repeatedly dismissed in the same manner.
“All too often Azhar got his front leg in the way and was then falling over the crease with his bat coming down at a bad angle. So the bowlers have worked to get his leg across his stumps before producing a nip-backer that gets him plumb lbw,” he said.
The adjustment proved beneficial for Azhar as he scored an unbeaten century, 141, in the first innings of the match.
“So there comes a time when, if you keep getting out the same way, you have to think ‘I’ve got to make an adjustment here,’” he said. “Azhar has done that between the last Test and the start of this one and his slight adjustment has been moving his front foot out of the way in his stance, just by a couple of inches, and opening his hips up a bit.—APP
