Lahore                  -            Mianwali-born middle-order batsman Mohammad Irfan Khan has remained a permanent fixture of Pakistan U19 sides since appearing in the seven-match series against South Africa U19 in June 2019. The tall right-handed batsman, who is one of the best fielders in the side, has also played all three Group C fixtures of the ongoing ICC U19 Cricket World Cup 2020 being played in South Africa.

Irfan made a big impact in Pakistan’s 7-0 sweep of the 50-over matches’ series in South Africa scoring 208 runs in four innings including an innings of 122, he averaged 69.33. His impressive show made his selection for the ICC U19 Cricket World Cup easy coupled with his fitness and fielding abilities.

In Pakistan U19’s tournament opener against Scotland, Irfan was promoted from his lower-order position to number four by head coach Ijaz Ahmed. Irfan looked at ease in his unbeaten 38-run innings which helped his side overcome the minnows by seven wickets. Irfan hit six fours in his 37-ball innings.

Irfan wants to continue to make an all-round contribution as Pakistan aim to seal a semifinal spot by overcoming Afghanistan in the quarterfinal clash at Benoni’s Willowmoore Park on Friday. Irfan said: “So far it has been a team effort from our side. M Haris and Qasim Akram have especially batted very well and led the way for us while our bowlers have given collective performances which have helped us in our qualification for the quarterfinals. The bowlers were brilliant against Bangladesh. Similarly, our fielding has been good too with Haris, Qasim and Haider especially doing very well.

“In the quarter-final our aim would be to score big runs and then restrict the opposition and keep things simple in the chase if we are to chase a target, we should aim to chase it down quickly. We have put in a big effort in our build-up to this tournament and since coming here hopefully we will get the rewards. “In the longer run, my aim is to represent Pakistan and serve the senior team for a long time.”