T20 World Cup: Who is Mohammad Haris, Pakistan’s fiery replacement for injured Fakhar Zaman

Pakistan suffered a major setback ahead of the do-or-die clash with South Africa at the T20 World Cup as top order batsman Fakhar Zaman was ruled out due to a knee injury. The left-handed star batter has been replaced by a virtually unknown player who has played only one T20I match before being called to the T20 World Cup. Haris played a fiery knock on his T20 World Cup debut, announcing himself on the biggest stage with 28 runs off 11 balls in an innings that had 3 sixes and 2 fours.

Who is Mohammad Haris?

The diminutive 21-year-old Mohammad Haris replaces Zaman who was an automatic starter when fit and an important player for Pakistan. Haris, a right-handed wicketkeeper batsman, became the 99th player to play for Pakistan in the shortest format of cricket in September 2022 when he was selected in the playing XI against England.

His debut was underwhelming as he only scored 7 runs with the bat. Before making his debut in the sixth T20I versus England, Haris had played as a substitute for injured Mohammad Rizwan and kept wickets in the fifth T20I. 

Haris has also played ODI cricket for his country and has four One-Day matches under his belt. The young batsman came on the radar of selectors after impressing in the 2022 Pakistan Super League while playing for Peshawar Zalmi. He took over the spot that belonged to veteran Pakistan wicketkeeper batsman Kamran Akmal.

In his first PSL match, Haris scored 49 runs from 27 balls, going on to win the Man of the Match award on his league debut. He was also on the reserve list for Pakistan during the Test series against Australia earlier this year. Haris was also part of the Pakistan squad at the Under-19 Cricket World Cup in 2020. 

Haris comes into a Pakistan squad which is looking to turn the tables after a disappointing start to the T20 World Cup campaign that has left the team on the edge of knockout. Pakistan needs to win both their matches against South Africa and Bangladesh and hope that results of other matches go their way, to qualify for the T20 World Cup 2022 semi-finals. The Men in Green take on the Proteas in a must-win fixture on Thursday.

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