By Zainab Shafiq 
Former Pakistan cricket team captain Misbah-ul-Haq recently praised the consistency and fitness of experienced all-rounder Shoaib Malik in franchise cricket and for the national team. However, Misbah expressed his surprise over Malik’s mediocre performance in the Pakistan Super League (PSL) season 8.
Misbah noted that Malik has been performing consistently for the past one and a half years, but he failed to cash in on his form in the PSL this year. Misbah pointed out that although Malik has adapted to modern-day cricket and can accelerate with a strike rate of 140-150, he hasn’t performed much in this edition of the PSL.
Misbah believes that Malik’s poor performance was due to his bad luck as he always came to bat when Karachi needed to score at a high run rate. Misbah added that this put Malik under pressure, which resulted in his mediocre performance in the PSL this year. Malik scored 200 runs in nine games, which includes two half-centuries.
Despite his mediocre performance in the PSL, Misbah expressed his confidence in Malik’s ability to adapt to modern-day cricket and strike well. He also praised Malik’s fitness and commitment to the game, suggesting that Malik could continue playing franchise cricket if he wanted to.
Misbah’s comments came as Karachi Kings were knocked out of the PSL after losing to Islamabad United in the playoffs. Malik is one of the most experienced cricketers in the Pakistani cricket team, having represented his country in over 400 matches across all formats of the game. He has also played in several domestic and franchise cricket leagues around the world.