Coaches, Zalmi brought out the all-rounder in Saim Ayub

Saim Ayub had double the number of wickets (eight) as he hit boundaries in the Asia Cup (three fours, one six). Six of these wickets were next to his name before he even got off the mark with the bat. If you’re new to the sport, you’d clearly sort Saim among bowlers who can be counted on for some handy tail-ender runs now and then. But really, it’s the opposite. He is an opener who rolls his arm part-time, or at least he used to before he morphed into a full-time all-rounder. 

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Saim Ayub Batter

Saim Ayub is a 23-year-old Pakistani cricketer, born on May 24, 2002, in Karachi.

Bowling for Zalmi in PSL

This transition, he says, is a result of the belief instilled in him by his coaches as well as his Pakistan Super League (PSL) franchise, Peshawar Zalmi. In his last two seasons with Zalmi, he was used as a bowler more regularly. Initially, he was handed the ball to provide a breakthrough, and over time, he amassed 12 scalps across PSL 9 and PSL X.

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Peshawar Zalmi Founded: 2015

Peshawar Zalmi is a Pakistani Twenty20 cricket franchise that competes in the Pakistan Super League.

"I used to do a little bit of bowling in club cricket as well, but since the PSL happened, Peshawar helped me a lot," Ayub said, talking about checking this unusual box.

"And then when I came into the Pakistan team, they showed belief in me and did a lot of technical and tactical work with me. But to be honest, I was not expecting that I would see such good bowling figures. The credit goes to the coaches who worked so much, and I also put in full effort, so if I can help the team, then why not?" he added.

No. 1 T20I all-rounder

Ayub took his maiden T20I wicket in May last year and collected more until the end of the year. He is currently the No. 1-ranked all-rounder in T20Is, as per the ICC rankings.

He was especially full of praise for Pakistan’s bowling coach, Ashley Noffke, whom he credited with helping him unlock his bowling potential.

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Ashley Noffke Bowler

"The bowling coach we currently have in the Pakistan team has worked a lot on our bowling and has helped me a great deal. He’s Australian, and he’s a really good coach. I’ve received a lot of help because of his bowling input."

Saim Ayub is currently playing in the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL), where he is representing Sylhet Titans. With Pakistan’s three-match T20I series against Sri Lanka beginning next week, he will fly to Sri Lanka to link up with the squad. 

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