Saud Shakeel excited ahead of Sri Lanka Test series

• Saud Shakeel is excited about the two-match Test series against Sri Lanka.
• He has prepared well for the series by working on his sweep shot and footwork.
• His favorite innings in his Test career so far is his century against Bangladesh in Karachi.

Saud Shakeel, a middle-order hitter for Pakistan, is excited about the two-match Test series against Sri Lanka that gets underway on Sunday in Galle.

The left-hander claimed that Pakistan had adequately prepared for the away series.

“We have had good preparations leading into this series with camps in Lahore and Karachi,” Saud told PCB Digital. “I’ve focused on enhancing my skills and adding a few more shots in the repertoire. There was a specific focus on spin during the camp in Lahore, which gave me good practice to counter spin on the turning tracks here.”

Additionally, Saud emphasized the significance of the sweep stroke in light of Sri Lanka’s favorable spin conditions.

“I’ve also focused on how I can score runs in Sri Lanka conditions, because at the end it is the runs that matter. I play sweep shot well, so I further improved it. Playing the sweep helps me derail the line and length of a bowler. I have also worked to improve my reverse sweep and footwork to tackle spin here,” he said.

“Sweep shot is my strength. Some players improvise it, but I premediate it, as I want it to be perfect by reaching the pitch of the ball and having my head in the right position,” he added.

Although this may be Saud’s first Test away from home, he has had enough of domestic experience, which he believes has helped him transition to Test cricket without any problems. He led the Shaheens team to Dambulla in 2021 for three List-A games and two unofficial Test matches against Sri Lanka ‘A’. In the unofficial Test series, Pakistan only batted twice, and Saud scored 118 in one of those innings.

“The experience of playing domestic cricket and for country’s ‘A’ side helps a cricketer a lot. It has helped me a great deal too. I’ve played a lot of domestic cricket in my career. I toured here with Pakistan Shaheens in 2021, though we played in a different city, it gave me an idea of how conditions are here.”

“It has been a healthy break for me,” he reflected. “There was not much four-day cricket in Pakistan in the last six months so I went to the United Kingdom to play county cricket, which gave me a different experience. This off period also helped me to re-evaluate my game and understand how I can further enhance my skills and fitness, which will help me perform in this series.”

In his current Test career, Saud has scored 580 runs at a brilliant average of 72.50, including five half-centuries and a century in 10 innings.

“My first century in international cricket in Karachi is quite dear to me and it is almost my favourite,” he said. “I regret not being able to finish the match in Multan [against England] when I got out on 96 [94]. Had I finished it for my team, it would have been my favourite.”

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