Australia opener Usman Khawaja admired the bowling capabilities of Pakistan pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi, saying it will not be easy to face the latter as an opener.

Expressing his thoughts ahead of the Australia series, Khawaja said: “Playing against the pace and swing of Shaheen Shah Afridi will not be easy.”

He also commended Pakistani batter Babar Azam’s batting skills. “Babar Azam is regarded as one of the best batters in the cricket world.”

“The spectators will get a great opportunity to watch quality cricket. I feel that it will be a competitive series against Australia and Pakistan,” Khawaja said.

– Hafeez upbeat about Babar Azam’s ‘bright’ future –

Pakistan team director Mohammad Hafeez expressed optimism that former captain Babar Azam will definitely “shine” by putting up strong performances in the future.

Addressing a press conference in Lahore, Hafeez said: “The players have been geared up for the Test series against Australia. Playing on the Australian tour will be challenging for the players. I felt that our players are ready to accept the Australian challenge.”

At the outset of his speech, Hafeez expressed his gratitude to PCB management committee chairman Zaka Ashraf for appointing him as team director.

“We will try all-out efforts to give the best possible results against Australia,” he added.

He admitted that Pakistan cricket remained "behind" in terms of playing modern cricket. “We missed planning in a way to produce better results,” he added.

Hafeez said, “Our chief selector has done the right thing by selecting the best performers from the domestic circuit."