Pakistan players at the Men’s Vitality Blast after round one

The first round of games of the Vitality Blast concluded on May 22, which means each team has now played one game. Yorkshire, Durham, Gloucestershire, Somerset, Northamptonshire, Worcestershire, Surrey, Kent, and Sussex were the teams that won their opening games.

Following is the list of how Pakistan players fared in round one:

Akif Javed

Akif Javed grabbed one wicket in his maiden Vitality Blast game. Representing Derbyshire, who ended up on the losing side against Durham, Akif got the better of wicketkeeper-batter Ollie Robinson by dismissing him two runs short of his half-century. The pacer finished with 1-34 after his quota of four overs.

Mohammad Ali

Mohammad Ali, who was supposed to join Nottinghamshire only for the County Championship, had extended his contract with the team at the eleventh hour. This allowed him to hit the ground running, and he got off to a good start in his first game.

Ali dismissed one batter, getting Will Luxton in his very first over. Ali was also Nottinghamshire’s most economical bowler as he conceded only 27 runs in four overs.

Usman Tariq

Usman Tariq, who is playing for Warwickshire in the Blast, is the most likely of the Pakistan contingent to stay in the headlines due to his quirky action. But in his opening game against Gloucestershire, the mystery spinner took two scalps.

He got off the mark by hoodwinking the opposition’s top scorer, Ben Charlesworth, and then followed it up with another wicket. He picked up his two wickets at the cost of only 17 runs in three overs.

Usama Mir

Playing his second season for Worcestershire, Usama Mir chipped in with both bat and ball.

With the bat, he smashed a six down the order during his three-ball stay. His contribution with the ball was more worthwhile as he dismissed Ashton Turner, who scored 22 off 13 balls and looked well set to play a long innings for Leicestershire.

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