Newcomer Sohail confident of 'cementing' all-rounder spot in Pak squad

Pakistan newcomer Haris Sohail feels confident that his all-rounder performance would help him cement his place in the squad after he displayed confidence that he could help his team's bowling.

Pakistan's bowling attack has been hit badly by the suspension of ace off-spinner Saeed Ajmal and all-rounder Mohammad Hafeez, but Sohail has offered some relief. The 25-year-old bowled ten overs for 39 runs before hitting an unbeaten career best 85 to anchor Pakistan's three-wicket win in the first ODI against New Zealand in Dubai on Monday.

Sohail's left-arm slow bowling enabled Pakistan to overcome the loss of Hafeez who was suspended on Sunday over illegal bowling action, The Dawn reported.

On Monday, Hafeez played as batsman only with Sohail coming to the rescue as fifth bowler in the match, a cause of delight for the youngster. He said that he is very happy to help Pakistan's bowling.

Sohail, who had bowled only 68 deliveries in 57 first-class matches before Monday, also said that he has been bowling in the nets for two to three hours daily and the spin bowling coach Mushtaq Ahmed, coach Waqar Younis and skipper Misbah-ul Haq all gave him confidence and it was a great encouragement.

Pakistan have named both Hafeez and Ajmal in their preliminary 30-man squad for next year's World Cup but would need extra help in bowling in case both failed to get cleared.

Sohail also hopes that his match-winning performance would help him in future. He said that he is confident that his performance would help him cement his place in the team.