Salman Agha sent home from England, responds with a stunning 300 not out in Pakistan

Just a couple of weeks after being dropped and sent home during Pakistan’s Test series against England, Salman Ali Agha has responded with the biggest innings of his first class career.

Salman smashed an unbeaten 300 from 336 balls for Kingsmen Academy against Markhor IT Solutions in the President’s Trophy Grade I at Abbottabad.

His innings included 42 fours and six sixes, helping Kingsmen declare on 565 for seven. Muhammad Suleman also made 115, with the pair adding 274 runs together.

And this was comfortably the biggest score of Salman’s career.

Before this innings, his highest first class score was 169. He had scored 17 first class centuries without ever reaching 200. Now he has gone straight past a double century and reached 300.

The timing makes it even more interesting.

Salman had captained Pakistan in the opening Test against England but struggled with the bat, scoring just 21 in the first innings and four in the second. He was dropped for the second Test at Lord’s and was later one of seven players released from the squad and sent back to Pakistan before the final Test at Edgbaston.

He returned to domestic cricket and has now produced the first triple century of his first class career.

Of course, scoring 300 in domestic cricket does not mean Salman should immediately walk back into Pakistan’s Test side. The standard of opposition also has to be considered, with Markhor IT Solutions an inexperienced team at this level.

But perhaps this is exactly how it should work.

When an international player loses form and his place in the national team, going back to first class cricket, spending a long time at the crease and proving himself again is the right way to respond.

Salman has done exactly that.