Like many of his more illustrious countrymen, Shahzaib Hasan was only in his teens when he was fast-tracked into the Pakistan team. A robust and ungainly opening batsman, he enjoyed healthy returns in his debut first-class season, scoring 607 runs in ten matches for Karachi Blues in the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy. In domestic one-dayers, he has scored 250 runs in seven games at a strike rate of 96.11, which saw him drafted into the squad for the 2009 World Twenty20 and he came highly recommended by Rashid Latif and Basit Ali, men with a keen eye for Karachi's talent. He doesn't mind a slog on either side of the wicket and hits the ball hard. Though he didn't set the world on fire, a couple of useful mid-sized Twenty20 scores at the top of the order helped Pakistan to unexpected success. Alongside Kamran Akmal, he provided Pakistan with solid starts, never moreso than in the final against Sri Lanka.
Cricinfo Staff (June 2009)