Saim Ayub bags 4 ducks in Asia Cup; Has Pakistan batter lost his mojo after gruesome injury?

Saim Ayub for Pakistan against India (AFP)

Saim Ayub is a highly rated cricketer in Pakistan and even before he made his international debut in 2023, the batter was touted to be the next superstar. The T20I debut came in 2023, but the left-handed batter really came into his own in 2024 and scored runs for Pakistan across formats.

However, Saim Ayub fractured his right ankle during the tour of South Africa in January 2025, and the flourishing career hit a temporary roadblock. The batter missed the all-important Champions Trophy and finally made his comeback in May 2025 with a T20I series against Bangladesh. Since then, he has played regularly for Pakistan, but the regular impactful knocks have been missing, and it has gone from bad to worse in the Asia Cup 2025, with the batter registering four ducks in the tournament.

So, has Saim Ayub lost his mojo after a gruesome injury in South Africa? Let's find out.

Saim Ayub struggles to match modern T20I standards in 2025

If we look at the T20I stats, it is clear that Saim Ayub's average and strike rate have gone down post his injury. Also, if we look at Saim Ayub's performance closely, he struggled in 2023 and it was only in 2024 that he got into his groove. In 2024, he scored his 375 runs at a strike-rate of 143.67 and in his last T20I before getting injured, he scored an unbeaten 98 against South Africa in alien conditions.

Saim Ayub in T20Is: Before and after injury

Whereas, after injury, Saim Ayub has not been able to score at a rate that is expected from him and the only exception was his knock of 69 against UAE. However, he did score two fifties in the T20I series against West Indies, too and thus has been doing decently, but there has been an overall dip in intent after his injury.

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Saim Ayub's dream ODI Run halted by injury

In ODIs, the difference is even clearer. Before injury, Saim Ayub dominated in ODIs and scored runs at an average of 64.33. He also scored two centuries against South Africa in a three-match series, but after injury, he could muster just 28 runs in three ODI matches.

Saim Ayub in ODIs: Before and after injury

Conclusion:

Therefore, it is clear that Saim Ayub has lost the momentum he was gaining at the international level before his injury. Since his comeback, he has not been able to revert to his natural aggressive batting, while the consistency has been missing too.

However, he remains a quality batter and Pakistan would need to keep trust in him despite a disastrous Asia Cup 2025 campaign.

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