Azhar Ali---Sucessor to the likes of Younis, Yousuf and Misbah?

Test cricket is all about showing temperament, staying out in the middle for a long period of time and of course scoring. Now Pakistan have players like Younis Khan, Mohammed Yousuf and the current captain Misbah-ul-Haq who are known be the backbones of the Pakistan batting lineup especially when it comes to test cricket. These three are experienced players and they have all the things that are required to be a good test player.

But lets face it, these guys are not going to be around for a very long time now. Misbah and Yousuf in particular are very close to saying good bye to their international careers and so is Younis. That's why Pakistan needs to find new players who can continue to play the role that currently guys like Younis, Yousuf and Misbah have and I think they might have found one, in the name of Azhar Ali.

Azhar made his test debut for Pakistan against Australia when Pakistan went on the England tour when Pakistan didn't have the services of Younis and Mishbah and right from the start I noticed one thing about him, he brought a kind of calmness to the middle order, he wanted just stay out there and he really made the bowler work for his wicket. During that tour Azhar scored an unbeaten 92 against England and also played a couple of other good innings. While he said after the tour that he could have done better, his performance was enough to impress the selectors who selected him for Pakistan's next test series which was against South Africa and this is where I think he really made a point.

In that two match test series, he scored three consecutive fifties in 3 innings and remained unbeaten on 28 in his 4th inning of the series, the series was tied 0-0.
He played some very nice shots on the back foot. He showed no sign discomfort against the ferocious bowling duo of Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel and was really good against spin in particular. He showed maturity and temperament beyond his years and you couldn't tell that this guy is a new addition to Pakistan's team.

Therefore I think that Azhar Ali can really be a successor to the likes of Younis, Yousuf and Misbah, he really has a bright future ahead of him and I hope he does well in Pakistan's next series which is against NewZealand.