Azhar Ali hopeful of Lord's debut

Azhar Ali, one of the rookie Pakistan batsmen selected for the tour of England, is hoping to make his Test debut at Lord's where they face Australia in the first of two Tests starting July 13. The right-handed batsman from Lahore was in the reserves for the Asia Cup and this is his first tour with the senior team.

Azhar is among three new faces in the Test squad and if picked for the first Test, he could be the first Pakistan batsman to debut at Lord's after Shadab Kabir in 1996.

"I have always dreamt of making my debut for Pakistan at Lord's and as luck would have it, our opening Test is at Lord's," Azhar told Pakpassion.net. "I really hope that I am given the opportunity to debut at Lord's, as it's a ground steeped in tradition and history."

Azhar, 25, believes his patience and willingness to occupy the crease for long periods will help his cause.

"I like to play long innings and have no problems in being patient at the crease," Azhar said. "I know the opposition will be tough in England, but I am confident that I can provide Pakistan with stability and a degree of calmness and assurance at the top of the order. I have experience of conditions in England having played league cricket over here, so hopefully I can use that experience to my advantage".

Azhar added that he got useful advice on batting from former captain Javed Miandad during a camp last month. "Javed was watching the batsmen at the emerging players camp and he came over and talked to me about the importance of crease occupation, not letting the opposition bowlers force you out of your comfort zone and playing each delivery on merit," Azhar said. "I think he liked what he saw in my batting and I will always be grateful for the advice he gave me".

Azhar was picked after scoring 445 runs in ten games with a personal best of 153 for Khan Research Laboratories in the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy.