A slightly late bloomer as per the subcontinental cricketing norms, Abid Ali has been around the domestic circuit for an eternity. Very few of the hard-toiling tales at the first-class level of Pakistan Cricket elevate to the worth they deserve with progressing age being an obvious aspect that is frowned upon and often shunned in this part of the world.
In a first-class career that spans nearly twelve years and 106 matches, Abid has compiled 7,116 runs in total. What has kept him in contention for the national squad, though, is his staggering average of just over 57 in the last three domestic seasons. Speaking of Quaid-e-Azam Trophy, he commenced this year's revamped edition of the tournament with a cracking double hundred, lidded with dominance and class.
Part and parcel of Abid's shimmering success have been his undeterred perseverance and invariable hard work despite knowing the strenuous obstacles that lay ahead of him. Abid's uncomplicated approach towards his batsmanship and an orthodox technique to top it up have been highly commended by former players and sporting analysts, alike. His batting style oozes traditional flamboyance and is far more fluent than haphazard.
The 32-year old opening batsman who hails from Lahore took his chance and emblazoned his name into the history books, forever. With this ton in Rawalpindi, he became the first cricketer ever to notch up centuries on both Test and ODI debuts. Earlier in 2019, in a bilateral series against the Aussies, Abid kicked off his one-day international career by conjuring a splendid ton.
Here in this interview, Abid reflects upon his journey through achieving the required levels of fitness, reverts back to the emotional day when he got his call-up from the national side, and shares his thoughts on the upcoming tour of England.
Q: You hail from Lahore - a city that is heftily occupied with foodies and gourmets. In a setting like that, how challenging did you find it to maintain your fitness?
A: Obviously, Lahore's cuisines and foods are renowned, and I am a massive fan of them, myself. When I toured the Emirates with the Pakistan A side, I managed to get quite a few runs against Australia in a practice game. I remember it from someone in the management that Abid Ali is very bulky and his fitness would not be good enough on the international stage. Mohammad Rizwan was the skipper of the side and he called upon me one day and blurted it out that if I wish to represent Pakistan, I have to sacrifice my unfaltering love for different kinds of Lahori foods. He emphasized on the fact that the progression of my career would conditionally depend on the amount of hard work I put in regarding my fitness.
From then on, I gradually putting in conscious efforts in improving my fitness. Our coach at NCA Lahore was very helpful in this regard. In fact, wherever I went to play, whether for regional teams or departmental ones, I requested the trainers there to make me put in extra hard yards during training in order to maximize the enhancement of my fitness.
Q: What was your reaction and how did you feel from within when you were informed that you had been selected to represent Pakistan? Who conveyed that pleasant news to you?
A: Honestly, when I got to know, I couldn't believe it. I told my parents that I have been selected to play for Pakistan and they were extremely jubilant. But, from within, I wanted to see it myself to truly believe that I had been selected. The person who conveyed the news obviously did it after utmost confirmation and they also wished me the best of luck for upcoming endeavors. The first time when I got selected, I remember I got too emotional and even cried a lot in ecstasy. All of my family - my wife, my mother, and my father - all of us were literally over the moon.
Q: You are now travelling to England in a few days' time. Apart from the physical training and all, are you mentally preparing yourself regarding the differing conditions that will be on offer there and how you are going to tackle the English bowlers in their own backyard?
A: England is one of the best teams in the world and we'd have to prepare ourselves in a way that we can encounter them head-on. We have former legendary cricketers of Pakistan - Misbah-ul-Haq and Younis Khan - in our coaching set up. I would definitely take this opportunity and inquire them about thriving in the English conditions since they, themselves, have played some stellar innings there not so long ago. I would try to adopt their recommendations as soon as possible to not only minimize the frailties in my batting but also to give my 100% to the team.
Q: You have achieved a remarkable feat of notching up centuries on both your Test and ODI debuts? Do you wish to replicate this in T20Is, too, if given a chance?
A: I do think about it that if, God willing, I get a call-up in the T20I side, I could kick-start my T20I career with a century, too.
Q: Is there any specific match from the past that you wish you had taken a part in as a player?
A: There are a couple of matches from the recent past that I wish I had participated in and actually performed well in it to take Pakistan to victory. The first one was the 2017 Champions Trophy group game against India and the second is the 2019 World Cup match against Afghanistan.
Q: What is your favorite format in Cricket? Although, all of them have their own diverse set of traits, but which one do you prefer the most from a personal point of view?
A: I feel that the degree of grandeur of Test Cricket is quite high and its reputation is solidly built. Often, during family events where a cricketer was invited, we used to regard him as a "Test Cricketer". People don't usually title players as an "ODI Cricketer" or a "T20 Cricketer". The significance of Test Cricket is incredible and, yes, it was always my wish to become a Test cricketer and wear that badge of honor.
