'Rizwan is a great leader,' says Multan Sultans flamboyant batter Tim David

Multan Sultans batter Tim David has praised skipper Mohammad Rizwan's leadership skills, saying he is a great leader who encourages everyone to go out and play their best game.

In a wide-ranging interview with Geo News, the Singapore-born cricketer talked about his career journey, playing in the Pakistan Super League (PSL) and the lack of opportunities for the players of associated members of the International Cricket Council.

Tim represents his country of birth in international cricket but lives in Australia, where he also plays in the Big Bash League. 

He got his first franchise contract outside Australia last year when he was picked by the Lahore Qalandars. His time as a replacement player for the UAE leg in the PSL got him noticed by the cricketing world, and soon he was in action in the Caribbean Premier League, and the Indian Premier League. 

The 25-year-old is back in the Pakistan Super League, donning Multan’s colours. He was picked as a wild-card in the platinum round of the franchise.

'PSL standard is really high'

Speaking to Geo News, Tim said that his maiden PSL with the Lahore Qalandars had a big impact on his career.

"It had a really big impact. Getting the opportunity to be with the Lahore Qalandars was very exciting, and being able to play in the PSL gave me a lot of confidence to perform in overseas conditions in a strong competition," he said, adding that "It's a very big opportunity for me to play for the Multan Sultans this time, a great opportunity to be able to bat at number five in a strong batting order. So, for me personally, I've already learned so much from the first four games, and I already feel like I'm a better player than when I came."

Tim said that there are things you have to adapt to and adjust to be able to combat what's been thrown at you in the game.

The aggressive batter, who also plays for Hobart Hurricane in the Big Bash League and has represented St. Lucia Kings in the CPL and Royal Challengers Bangalore in the IPL, said that the PSL’s standard is really high, especially for the batters who are coming from other countries. 

"There are guys running in, bowling at a good pace, wanting to knock you over. So, that's always a challenge, and the scene with the emerging players is that someone new every season comes in and bowls at 145kmph an hour.

"This is only my second season, but I've already experienced that and from talking to the other overseas players that have played more or less the same every year," he said.

"It's really good for me to be a part of it to learn and try and improve my game," he added.

Fewer opportunities

Replying to a question, Tim David said that having more players from associated countries will be great for the growth of the game, but insisted that players need to earn spots by improving their standards as well.

"There are some players in associate cricket that are very good players and, you know, they've done well in the T20 World Cup as we've recently seen, but you know, guys like Sandeep, and hopefully myself now, we probably justify our position in a starting team and in franchise tournaments, so I think it kind of picks itself a little bit," he added.

Replying to a question, he said that Singapore didn’t get much cricket last year and it is tough for the team to prepare well ahead of the T20 World Cup Global qualifiers and suggested that there should be more competitive cricket for sides like Singapore. 

"I think the plan is in place at the moment for those World Cup qualifiers. But there are some good teams that have probably played more cricket than us recently. So, it'd be interesting to see, but it's always good to go there. We've had the experience of the last World Cup qualifiers in the UAE. So that's a good experience to call upon," he said.

He further said that it is tough for them to play some cricket against bigger countries as they’ve already got a packed calendar and revenue issues, but there can be series against better countries than Singapore in the Asian region, like Nepal, Malaysia, or even Zimbabwe or the Netherlands. "I think that it is important for the Singapore national team to play more cricket if they can," he said. 

Mohammad Rizwan and Shahnawaz Dahani

Tim expressed his appreciation for the Multan Sultans' dressing room environment and praised Mohammad Rizwan's leadership. He also hailed his teammate, Shahnawaz Dahani, saying that it is always good to have someone like Dahani around in the dressing room.

The flamboyant batter revealed that Larkana-Express had taught him some Urdu words.

"He's a big character and very energetic. He teaches me a little bit of Urdu, and sometimes when you're feeling a little bit down or tough with performances, it's good to have guys like him around so you can just have a bit of a laugh with them to lighten the mood," he said about Dahani.

Mohammad Rizwan is a great leader, said Tim, adding that he encourages everyone to go out and play their best game.

The batter also talked about Imran Tahir and said "he leads by example and has got a big heart with how he plays and how he bowls." 

The Multan Sultans’ player said that the biggest goal for him in PSL7 is to try and play with freedom and have a winning impact in every game.

"Sometimes it's difficult to try and set statistical goals, particularly as a middle order batsman in T20 cricket. So, I have to be flexible, I have to be willing to take risks to benefit the team," he concluded.