Debutant Usman hopes to perform like Inzamam, Younis

Pakistan's rising star Usman Salahuddin has said that he wants to serve Pakistan long just like great Younis Khan and Inzamam-ul-Haq did.

Speaking to the media at Leeds, the middle order batsman seemed very excited for his Test debut on Friday. “Playing Test cricket from Pakistan is my dream and I am excited for tomorrow’s game,” he said.

Usman has been named in Pakistan’s playing XI in place of Babar Azam, who ruled out from the series after fracturing his forearm during Lord’s Test.

"You can't lose heart in cricket," he said a day ahead of the other big day. "You have to wait for your good times, which I have done. I'd like to give credit to the management because I've been with the team for a few tours now but they never let me get down. They kept practicing with me. Whatever weak points I had they've worked on with me."

The season just gone was a hellish one for batsmen and he averaged less than 38. But there was a point to it. "The Dukes ball has helped. The PCB used those this season because this tour was on, so it was good practice.

He said, "Batsmen didn't score the kind of runs they would get usually so, though the Duke ball is difficult, it's been pretty helpful. I've enjoyed it quite a bit. It doesn't get old quickly and it keeps swinging."

"I don't want to play just one Test. Like Younis Khan got 10,000 runs, or Inzi bhai's performances, those legends, I'm going to try and play as much as I can for Pakistan. I don't want to just play one Test and then relax. I want to play for a long time for Pakistan," he said.