Muhammad Abbas and his dad are rarely far apart from each other. Since he was three, Abbas began to show interest in his father Azhar's profession at their home in Auckland, where the family moved from Lahore, where Abbas was born. Abbas Snr began playing domestic cricket in Pakistan in the mid '90s where he operated as a handy medium-pacer before the family upped sticks and moved to New Zealand, where he wound down his domestic career with Auckland.
"Every time we had some space somewhere, I made sure we played some cricket, be it underarm or just throwing the ball to each other," Abbas Snr tells ESPNcricinfo.
But on this day, they weren't together. The 21-year-old Abbas got a call he wasn't expecting, with New Zealand head coach Gary Stead on the other end of the line. After showing form with the bat - he had made 104 and 50 in his last two List A innings - Abbas had been selected in New Zealand's ODI squad against Pakistan, his country of birth.
"He got emotional, which I can understand," Abbas Snr says. "Anyone will feel that way. Excited, very happy, but also surprised. He's a good player but there are a lot of good players out here where he plays domestic cricket. So many players are such a delight to watch. But he is one of them. So it was a surprise for all of us. I got emotional as well. It started as a fun, bonding father-son activity, and his emotions and mine were similar."
Abbas is an allrounder, and it's clear at the moment that it's batting that takes precedence. He's among the top scorers in the Ford Trophy, New Zealand's domestic one-day competition, and Stead appears to be a huge admirer.
"[He is] a real, real talent, especially in playing spin bowling," he said. "His ability to bowl a little bit of left-arm seam as well is really helpful in terms of us trying to build our depth of allrounders."
According to his father, Abbas opened the bowling in school and district cricket in his early teenage years. This was when the father first came to grips with the talent the son had. "In a couple of months in a district competition he made seven centuries, which was unheard of for a player of his age. He was opening the bowling but also doing so well with the bat. That's when I thought he could become a good allrounder. When he was 13, I started feeling he could go far in this sport."
Abbas was never singularly focused on cricket in the way it can be easy to expect from the son of a South Asian professional cricketer. Until his mid-teens, he remained interested in football, playing for clubs and schools across Auckland. At that time though, New Zealand Cricket (NZC) came calling, and a decision had to be made.
At 16, NZC included Abbas in its talent pathway program. A couple of years later, Cricket Wellington offered Abbas a domestic contract. His father, of course, moved with him, taking up a job as Wellington's assistant coach.
Abbas Snr cannot speak highly enough of the support from NZC and Wellington. "The way NZC looked after him and put resources around him is unbelievable," he says. "We can't thank them enough. He went into their development squad when he was 16.
"They put all their resources around him so he can improve his game and get better. NZC are not only interested in their skills, but also [ensure] their studies and environment are okay. It's a 360-degree secure environment they develop around their young players. And it's so pleasant for parents like myself to see how a cricket board has such an amazing way of developing players and making them professionals. In addition, Cricket Wellington also put all their resources since he moved from Auckland and they helped him in every possible way."
That description appears to resonate with anyone who has watched New Zealand from the outside. The cricketing culture in the country, even at an elite level, appears to be one where the demand of excellence does not seem to equate with a ball and chain around players' feet, and where elite performance does not sap joy from the performers. There was no quid pro quo to New Zealand Cricket's support, and it wasn't until as recently as a couple of years ago that father and son first seriously thought cricket could be a viable profession for Abbas.
"I strongly believe he will become a very fine allrounder eventually," Abbas Snr says. "It's a very difficult task to do both at such a young age. Currently he's a batting allrounder but he has the ability to become a very fine bowler.
"How far he goes depends on self-discipline, hard work and consistent behaviour. He has those qualities right now, but can he do that over a long period? If he maintains all that for a number of years, he's going to keep rising."
It might mean more time apart from his son, but this is one sacrifice among many others that Abbas Snr is happy to make.