Shoaib Akhtar calls Haris Sohail Pakistan's 'smartest' cricketer

Former Pakistan speedster Shoaib Akhtar has applauded middle order batsman Haris Sohail, calling him a batsman with ‘the brains’ in current Pakistan squad.

“Sohail is the pick of the selection from this [current] lot of Pakistani cricketers, because he can construct an inning, take single-doubles, hit big hundreds and has the brain as well to adjust to the conditions ,” said Akhtar, while talking to media.

Sohail played a top notch innings of 41 runs off equal number of deliveries, featuring seven boundaries in the third ODI against England before he got run out by Tom Curran.

Akhtar, the record setting fast bowler also revealed that Haris’s only problem is his knees, but still remains the ‘smartest’ cricketer in the middle order.

“The only drawback of Sohail is his knees, I once asked him regarding this problem and he told me that he has a genuine problem with his knees like I [Akhtar] used to have. But he is the smartest and most talented cricketer that fits in the middle order, but he is not able to get fit in as other players need to be adjusted,” added Akhtar.

England won the third ODI by six wickets and 31 balls to spare thanks to aggressive innings from Jonny Bairstow and Jason Roy. With the series 2-0 in favor of the visitors, the hosts Pakistan would clash with England in the fourth ODI on May 17 at Nottingham.