Shadab reveals secret behind his consistent batting performances

Revealing the secret behind his consistent batting in Test cricket, Pakistan all-rounder Shadab Khan said, “Whenever I go into bat, I bat as if this was my last innings.”

Speaking to the media after a disappointing day for Pakistan at Leeds, the leg-spinner admitted that he cannot fill the gap left by absence of Yasir Shah. “I didn’t do that well at Lord's and I realize that I cannot fill the gap left by absence of Yasir but I will try my best,” he added.

Commenting on his batting performance he said, "There was swing and seam in the second session today but I tried to bat the way I usually bat.”

"The weather makes a big difference as when we started to bowl, it was very sunny. Tomorrow, cloudy weather is expected so we will try to get England out quickly as possible,” the 19-year-old said.

When asked whether he would love to bat up the order or not, he replied, “All batsmen ahead of me are there as specialists and they are doing well. There have been no discussions about me being promoted up the batting order.”

England bowl out Pakistan for 174 before tea

Comparing Test cricket with One Day Internationals (ODIs) and T20s, Shadab said, “[Test cricket] is quite difficult for me, especially compared to the kind of cricket I had played before.” He was quite pleased and satisfied with his performance in the longest format of the game. “I am glad that my form is good, I am scoring runs and taking wickets also. I am feeling good about myself; I played my first Test and then played a lot of T20Is and ODIs which gave me a lot of experience of international cricket.”

Giving credit to England bowlers, he said, “The decision to bat first was a good one but England bowled well. Steve Smith is my favourite but I did not come into this team as a batsman and my focus is on bowling.”