Karachi: Pakistan's former pacer, Sarfraz Nawaz, who is one of the pioneers of reverse swing, has ruled out Test match cricket for lanky left-arm fast bowler Mohammad Irfan. Nawaz, who is presently working as a fast bowling coach for the Pakistan Cricket Board, has advised that Irfan, who is nearly seven feet tall, should be only utilised for T20 matches and ODIs.
"Irfan shouldn't play Test matches because from what I have seen he will not last long if he plays the longer duration matches. He should be used fully in T20 matches and be played in only selected and important 50 over matches," he said. Nawaz said that Irfan's fitness position and body mass was such that he would not be able to endure long spells of bowling.
"He is a very attacking option that Pakistan has but he has to be utilised very sensibly," Nawaz said.
Irfan suffered a hip hairline fracture while playing in the series against South Africa last October in the UAE and, after returning to domestic cricket, suffered a recurrence of the injury in December.
Irfan, who has not played international cricket for nearly eight months due to the injury from which he has now recovered according to the medical panel of the board, is seen as a vital part of Pakistan's pace attack for the coming World Cup in 2015.
Pakistan's former captain, Imran Khan has also said that if Irfan is handled properly and his fitness is looked after, he can be a match winner for the national team in the World Cup.
Nawaz, 65, who took 177 wickets in 55 Tests and 63 in 45 ODIs, said that he had also worked with the other pacers and most of them needed to work on lifting their fitness standards and sharpening their skills.
