DUBAI-Man-of-the-match Dwayne Smith has fully praised the Pakistan Super League, saying it has been growing fast and it will help Pakistan cricket a great deal.

Talking to The Nation, Smith, who hammered unbeaten 71 runs for Peshawar Zalmi against Karachi Kings, said: “Pakistan is blessed with highly talented players and it has been producing quality youngsters, who are bound to excel at higher level. The way youngster Ibtisam Sheikh played brilliantly, I couldn’t believe that he is a newcomer; rather I was feeling that he had played over 300 matches. He is very aggressive and always tries to give his 100 percent and this quality can help him become a great cricketer.”

Smith ruled out that his involvement in three run-outs hampered the Zalmi’s path to victory. He clarified that the run-outs are part of the game and sometimes, it doesn’t go in your favour. “That was not our day, that’s why we couldn’t perform up to the mark, which on the other hand, Karachi Kings put out extra efforts, which bore fruit for them in shape of 5-wicket win against us.”

When asked his efforts proved futile in the end, when Zalmi lost the match, he said: “There is still lot to play. We gave our best and unfortunately, we couldn’t win, but we will bounce back and play more aggressively in the next matches.”

When asked whether it was his plan to wait till last over and then cut lose, Smith said he was sure, as long as he stayed at the wicket, runs would come. “It was good competitive total in the end and we all play our part, but sometimes things didn’t go in your favour. The passion and involvement of Sub-continent crowd was excellent and it is always special to witness such a charged crowd.”