Pakistani-born Mohammad Azharullah, who represented Multan, Quetta, and WAPDA in Pakistan's domestic cricket is now playing for Northamptonshire in England. In 57 First Class matches he has taken 204 wickets at an excellent average of 26, and also holds a commendable record in List A cricket. He is currently the the leading wicket-taker in the Friends Life T20 competition this year where he has taken 24 wickets at an average of 11.37 with four 3-wicket hauls and an economy rate of 7.03. His fantastic performance in the competition have played a huge part in Northants qualifying for Finals Day for the first time since 2009.

Speaking with PakPassion.net Azharullah discussed his experiences of playing domestic cricket in Pakistan and now England, his performance in the ongoing Friends Life T20, and his thoughts on the possibility of representing England in the future.

By Shayan Siddiqui (10th August, 2013)

PakPassion.net: Tell us about your early days, how did you get involved in cricket and how did your interest develop?

Azharullah: My older brother, Mazharullah was also a fast bowler. I used to go and watch him play, however he was also very good at studies, so our father didn’t let him play and told him to instead focus on his education. Mazharullah became busy with his studies and eventually became a doctor. I grew up watching my brother play and he supported me a lot.

At school and college we only played tape ball cricket, and fortunately my pace was very good back then so people encouraged me to take up cricket professionally. My brother also encouraged me and suggested I give professional cricket a go for a while to see if I can make a future out of it. It took me three or four years to play my 1st first-class match and after that I never looked back.


PakPassion.net: You spent many years playing first-class cricket in Pakistan, were you called up for any ‘A’ Tours or U19 tours?

Azharullah: Yes I went on one Pakistan Academy tour in 2008. It was a tri-nation series in Bangladesh with the host nation and South Africa were also involved in it. My performance was decent as I played three matches there and took three or four wickets and bowled very economically. After that, the 4-day games began and I returned home.


PakPassion.net: What brought you to England and how did your career at Northamptonshire begin?

Azharullah: I began by playing club cricket in England as an overseas player. I played in the Bradford league for East Bierley Cricket Club for three years, before getting married here in 2009. I went back to Pakistan to play a season of domestic cricket in 2009 before settling permanently in the UK in 2010. The procedure here is that you can’t play first-class cricket immediately, you have to wait a few years before qualifying to play county cricket, so I had to bide my time.

Then this winter, I was recommended to Northants by the chairman of Pudsey Congs Cricket Club, Ralph Middlebrook (father of James Middlebrook) and I attended their winter trials. They liked what they saw there and signed me up.


PakPassion.net: You’re the leading wicket taker in this year’s Friend's Life T20 tournament, what do you think is the reason for your success?

Azharullah: Fortunately my performance has also been good in the 4-day and one-day competitions, I’ve taken eight wickets in three matches in the YB40 competition, but there’s no secret to it. I spent two months playing for the Northants 2nd XI, because the 1st team was performing so well and there was really no place for me in there. I put in some extra effort to break into the 1st XI because I’d been playing at the highest level in Pakistan and I wanted to do the same here. I performed well and they had to give me a chance in the 1st XI.

It was nothing new for me though, I had played a lot of cricket in Pakistan, particularly Twenty20 cricket which is played everywhere at club level over there. It’s also played on flat concrete wickets so I had a lot of good experience from bowling on those types of flat wickets. All top level bowlers that come from Pakistan have a lot of experience of T20 cricket. I simply used my experience, God helped me and thankfully it's going well at the moment here at Northamptonshire.


PakPassion.net: You’ve now played domestic cricket in both Pakistan and England, how would you compare the two?

Azharullah: There’s no major difference, professional cricket is tough over here and it’s tough over there - you get top level sportsmen in professional cricket wherever its played. Here however, the conditions are a bit more suitable for the bowlers whereas in Pakistan the wickets are very flat. In England you get variable conditions and the wickets give bowlers more support. So having bowled on the flat pitches in Pakistan, I’m finding it a bit easier over here!


PakPassion.net: You’ve helped Northamptonshire qualify for the FLT20 semi-finals and you’ll be playing at Finals Day for the first time, how does it feel?

Azharullah: It’s the big time! First and foremost it’s a big moment for the club having qualified after such a long time. It’s my first season for the club so having reached finals day straight away is fantastic, I’m very happy and very content.


PakPassion.net: David Willey, your opening bowling partner at Northants has impressed one and all and has just been called up by the England Lions. Do you feel he can go far in the future?

Azharullah: David Willey is definitely a prospect. He has taken over 40 wickets in the County Championship. He’s also in the top 10 bowlers in the T20 competition so he’s certainly a future prospect for England. He’ll make it sooner rather than later in one of the formats.


PakPassion.net: We’ve seen the likes of Imran Tahir move from Pakistan and go on to represent South Africa, Fawad Ahmed may soon do the same for Australia. Are you hopeful you may get a similar opportunity to play for England?

Azharullah: Why not? As long as I’m playing cricket I will push to play at the international level. International cricket was always a dream of mine and it still is. Thankfully I've got a strong body and good physique and our physio at Northants is doing a fantastic job of looking after us physically - he’s possibly the best physio in the world. So I’m looking after my body and I will continue to push for an international spot for as long as possible. I’m 29 now so I’ll need to play domestic cricket for a few years before qualifying to play for England, so we’ll see what happens.


PakPassion.net: Are there any players who you wish to emulate? Anyone who’s bowling style you’ve tried to model yourself on or any player you particularly look up to?

Azharullah: I’m from Burewala in Pakistan so naturally I watched Waqar Younis all the time while I was growing up. Waqar Younis, Nadeem Iqbal, Mohammad Zahid are all from an area where I come from, but Waqar will always be my ideal bowler. I’ve recently changed my action to make my arm a bit higher but when I first started I completely copied Waqar’s action. Even now I try to bowl with the same aggression that he did.

One player who has particularly inspired me also is Azhar Mahmood. He’s a true professional and has done fantastically well in his career. He’s someone I would love to emulate.


PakPassion.net: Having played in domestic cricket in Pakistan for so long, you will have seen a lot of talented players being produced, are there any that have particularly caught your eye?

Azharullah: Pakistan cricket has a very bright future, there is a lot of talent there. Sohaib Maqsood, who has just been named in Pakistan’s T20 squad for Zimbabwe, is a very talented player and deserves his chance. Zulfiqar Babar who played recently is also an excellent bowler. Aamer Sajjad of WAPDA will also be playing in the middle order for Pakistan sooner rather than later. He’s a very good player.

There are of course some excellent fast bowlers coming through. Junaid Khan has impressed me a lot and there’s also quite a few coming through from Multan. Pakistan cricket certainly has a bright future and should progress well in the coming years.


PakPassion.net: What are the main values you have learnt from your experience of playing cricket in England?

Azharullah: Professionalism is vital in cricket anywhere in the world and I’ve learnt to never give up. It’s important to keep trying because I sacrificed three years of cricket by living here. I looked after my body in cold conditions and I didn’t know whether or not I would get a chance or whether I would even attend trials. I didn’t give up and kept trying hard and thankfully, I was rewarded. So I’ve learnt from cricket to keep trying and success will come.


PakPassion.net: What are your future plans and aims?

Azharullah: I have a one year contract with Northants for now. We’ve had a very important period recently on the field so I’ve just been concentrating on that. I’m still in talks with them, but for now I want to concentrate on my cricket - this is something to sort out later.

We have Finals Day coming up as well as an important Championship game, so I’ll try my best first in these important matches as I have all season and then worry about the rest later.


PakPassion.net: Azharullah, thank you very much for your time.

Azharullah: My pleasure, thank you.

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