Zen Malik waited 27 years and 23 days to make his First Class debut – but he’s making up for lost time after an impressive start to his professional red ball career.
The top order batter hit a composed, match-winning innings at Headingley on debut and followed that up with a maiden century at Edgbaston against County Championship title holders Surrey.
Malik’s story has been well documented in recent weeks.
He spent six seasons as a trialist knocking on county doors (he tried out with more than 10 pro sides) before a breakthrough Second XI season in 2024 saw a door open at Warwickshire.
He amassed 624 runs for Glamorgan in the Second XI County Championship at an average of more than 100.
And it convinced Bears coaches that Malik – who’d been training and playing with the South Asian Cricket Academy (SACA) – deserved an opportunity and a two-year contract.
“It’s been a great couple of weeks…certainly worth the wait,” said Malik, who developed through Worcestershire’s Youth Pathway and Academy.
“There have been a lot of struggles and questions along the way, leading to this point, but I put all those to bed at Headingley. I was so happy in that moment. Very proud at the hard work I’d put in, and my family had put in.
“I was unsure if I’d play as we were waiting till quite late to make a decision on Hainy’s injury. I was going through my pre-game routine as though I was playing but only found out 10 minutes before the toss.
“I was very excited. Yorkshire fielded a strong team with several international players. It was doing a bit so I just had to keep it simple, try to take the sting out of their attack, and chip away at the runs. I grew into it, felt good, and to hit the winning runs was amazing.
“And to make a hundred at Edgbaston alongside Barney who I grew up with at Worcester was very special. A lot of years hard work led to that moment, a lot of sacrifice.
“I’m loving being in a professional set-up, being around people like Tom Latham and the quality in the dressing room, the facilities, the coaches. I’m using it all to try to better myself every day.”
Fellow top order batter Vansh Jani followed Malik recently from SACA to land a contract with the Bears. He’s the 11th graduate from the project to land a pro deal.
Malik is full of praise for the way SACA helps give players a platform and the support to attract County clubs.
“I can’t speak highly enough of SACA,” he added. “They’re doing amazing work and helping players get the recognition they deserve. It’s great Vansh has joined us. He’s on fire at the moment with four 100s already this season.
“It’s early in season. I’m not putting any targets on myself, I just want to be ready for each game, stay focused on my cricket and be there for the team when they need me. That way I’m confident the performances will take care of themselves.”
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