KARACHI: After the return of Mohammad Amir to international cricket earlier this year, Salman Butt and Mohammad Asif now seem to be completing the full cycle of redemption after being named into the gold and silver categories, respectively, for the second edition of Pakistan Super League (PSL) on Friday.

“I am grateful to Allah and would like to thank the Pakistan Cricket Board and PSL for giving me this opportunity. I pray that I get an opportunity to represent one of the franchises,” Salman told Dawn in an exclusive interview.

The left-handed batsman has made headlines since his return to competitive cricket on domestic circuit after the trio’s spot-fixing ban was suspended in September last year.

In the recently concluded National T20 Cup, Salman averaged a towering 70 with more than four 50-plus scores for Lahore Whites.

Read: Will Pakistan be able to resist Butt and Asif?

However, Salman often found himself on the receiving end for his slow scoring rate in the limited-overs format. Same was the case when he scored an unbeaten 55 off 55 balls during Lahore Whites’ semi-final defeat by eventual winners Karachi Blues.

Recalling the match, Salman said: “I have been often criticised for my slow strike-rate but if you see I had no other option but to play slow during that particular situation as we had lost all of our middle-order batsmen in quick succession.

“After Hussain Talat and me, we had bowlers in the batting line-up. What would have you done in such a situation? Misbah-ul-Haq had been doing the same thing for the past five years and he was labelled tuk tuk for that.”

Salman, while talking about the tough circumstances for batsmen in the domestic circuit, said that as an opener one was required to respect the conditions.

He added: “It is the easiest path for me to get out while hitting. But I stand there for the sake of the team. I feel that now I am being criticised for actually playing longer innings.”

Read: My redemption starts on the cricket field, says Butt

The southpaw went on to question that where the critics were when he scored his tournament best 84 not out at 152 against Lahore Blues in Rawalpindi.

Drawing parallel with the Indian Premier League, Salman lamented the fact that “substandard and slow wickets” were the root cause behind national batsmen’s low strike rate.

“Modern-day cricket is all about adaptation. In IPL, the average scores are about 170. We had signed the same batsmen for PSL, but they failed to perform because of the wickets that were prepared in Dubai and Sharjah. You saw Chris Gayle fail as whenever he came on to bat, the oppositions used to introduce spinners.”

However, the ex-Test captain seemed confident that about his chances of securing a spot in the national side.

To a question regarding his chances of making it to the national team, Salman said: “If I am able to win matches during the upcoming PSL then why not? You should expect good performances from my side and I am hopeful that I will deliver.”

Published in Dawn, October 8th, 2016