Pakistan’s Hasan Raza, who turned out for Alubond Hyderabad Nawabs in the Superstars T20 in Dubai, says he still has hopes of playing for his national team – nine years after last pulling on the country’s green jersey.
The 32-year-old batsman last represented Pakistan in a Test match against England in Lahore where he scored 21 runs in 2005.
In that stint, he scored 235 runs in seven Tests and 242 in 13 ODIs. Since then he has been playing domestic cricket in the UAE and in Pakistan – a sport that he describes as his “passion”.
“Yes I still feel I can,” replied Raza when asked if he remained hopeful of playing for Pakistan again. “I am scoring some runs and that is part of the game. Fitness is important and I have to play well.
“To get into contention you have to score 50s and 100s. You never know, anything can happen."
In the meantime, he is enjoying his cricket, most notably in the second edition of the Superstars T20, which also featured his countrymen Kamran Akmal and Test opener Khurram Manzoor.
“It’s a very good tournament that has been developed here in the UAE," he said. “There’s a lot of overseas players and homegrown talent here, and I enjoy playing here.
“It’s a good opportunity for the youngsters to learn and take an interest in the sport because Twenty20 is a big and exciting format around the world.
“You just have to look at the IPL as well as the domestic game here which has Sri Lankans, Pakistanis and Indian players, which is good,” he added, having scored 83 runs in the group stage as his side failed to advance to the quarter-finals.
The right-hand batsman is no stranger to playing on the domestic circuit in the UAE. For six years now, he has been participating in Ramadan competitions and other tournaments around the country.
And having played with the likes of all-rounder Shahid Afridi and former fast-bowler Wasim Akram, Raza says he’s happy to pass on knowledge to the youngsters in the Superstars T20.
“Having played a lot of matches for Pakistan with some great players, I learned many aspects of the sport. And now, as always I’m happy to pass on something to the younger players.
“When I trained with the team (Alubond Hyderabad Nawabs) I talked to the guys on how they can improve.
“I can see a lot of the local-based players are enjoying playing the cricket here which is good to see.
“The local-based players have some great cricket facilities in the UAE. Their three stadiums are fantastic and they have great cricket centres and academies in Dubai, Sharjah and Abu Dhabi.
“I’ve been playing here for six years now. It’s a good experience for myself and I enjoy playing cricket with passion and that is something I enjoy seeing.”
Meanwhile, defending champions Wings Ahmadabad Aces edged Seven Seas Rajasthan Royals by three wickets to reach the semifinals.
Aces will be joined by Danube Lahore Badshah who thrashed Al Faraa Al Ain Super Kings by 84 runs. The semi-finals will be played on Thursday at Fairgrounds Oval at Dubai Men’s College at Dubai Academic City from 16:30, while the final will be played on Friday at 17:00 at the same venue.
