Khurram Manzoor

An immensely talented opening batsman, Khurram Manzoor is seen as a long term solution to Pakistan’s opening woes which over time has become a game of musical chairs.

The right hander who made his entry into domestic cricket aged just 16 immediately made waves on his first class debut scoring a fine 73 against Peshawar. His form thereafter was patchy but he turned over a new leaf in 2006-07 and in his next three seasons was averaging close to 54 in first class cricket.

Such batting prowess couldn’t be ignored by selectors who handed him his ODI debut against Zimbabwe in early 2008. Khurram made full use of his opportunity scoring a 50 on debut and followed it up with another half century in the next game. Exactly a year following his ODI debut, he received his Test cap and only in his second Test scored an unbeaten 59 against the Sri Lankans. However a humiliating 3-0 Test loss to Australia in the 2009-10 saw him unceremoniously dumped from the side despite making a fine 77 in the third and final Test of the series.

But following some scintillating performances for Pakistan A on the tour of West Indies, in late 2010, he was once again recalled to Pakistan’s Test side for a two Test tour of New Zealand. Opportunities are bound to follow in future but the onus will now be on the man from Karachi to make full use of them and give the selectors some food for thought. He got a chance finally in 2013 in the Pakistan Test squad against Zimbabwe.