Shan Masood

Shan Masood Factfile

1)      He was vice captain of the 2008 Under 19 World Cup team which had Shehzad, Umar Akmal, Junaid Khan, Umar Amin in

2)      He was a boarding pupil at Stamford Private School in Lincolnshire

3)      He got admission to Loughborough University, one of the top ranked in UK

4)      He got admission into Durham MCCU to play first class cricket against counties

5)      He has received training from ex England players such as Graeme Fowler at Durham

6)      He combined studying at Loughborough and playing first class cricket in Pakistan together

7)      He was sitting exams 2 months before his Test debut against the world number 1s

8)      He has written impressive articles on Dawn such as ‘In Pursuit of the Star’

9)      His overall first class numbers are modest but he has played first class cricket in England along with BUCS university cricket and club cricket with success

10)   His favourite players include Alastair Cook and Younis Khan

11)   He speaks English very confidently and fluently as you would expect. The best I have seen by a Pakistan cricketer for a long time. Gives articulate responses.

12)   He comes from an educated background with a good upbringing.

13)   He is a tweeter and is the only Pakistani Cricketer who tweets without slang or internet language or informal tweeting. The quality of his tweets is good.

14)   Against the likes of Dale Steyn he put on 100 for the opening stand with Manzoor on his test debut

15)   He got off the mark in Tests with a boundary against Dale Steyn on the first ball he faced and got a 3 from the second ball he faced

Given his off field accomplishments, it’s only inevitable Shan will be a credible captaincy option somewhere down the line, especially if he nails down the opening slot.

On the other hand, he could end up becoming an Ed Cowan type, an MCCU graduate like Shan, left handed long format opener, talented columnist in his written work, suitable captaincy option with experience in the role, but struggling to hold a permanent position in the side and win people over. Instead he is known more for his academic background than his pedigree as a player.