CricInfo Home
News Home

NEWS FOCUS
Rsa in Pak
NZ in India
Zim in Aus

Domestic
Other Series

Inzamam-Ul-Haq is a genial, young man who is, if anything, shy and who shuns the limelight. I have known him since 1992 and cannot recall ever having had a conversation with him. We have, instead, exchanged smiles. Yet, I have been a devoted fan of his and he knows it.

At the PCB function in Lahore, a few weeks ago (when he was going through a lean patch) he came up to me, clasped my hand and shook it, with both of his hands. I told him that I saw a beaming smile on his face but saw no concern that he was a little short of runs.

"They'll come," he said, with unusual immodesty. Behind that smile, was the certainty that when the runs would come, they would do in as a deluge.

Inzamam came within a touching distance of Brian Lara's record of 375. I think we have all run out of superlatives and still find ourselves short of doing justice to that innings. Too bad not too many people were at the ground to see it but millions must have watched it on television.

A friend of mine telephoned me to ask me what I thought of that innings, "What did you think?" I asked. "Great, wasn't it?" he said. I thought I would tease him a little. "I have seen Inzamam play better," I told him.

Actually, I hadn't. Here was a batsman for whom the runs had dried up. He was beginning to fall in that most fatal of traps. He was trying harder, abandoning his natural game in the hope that either he could graft or blast his way out of his lean patch.

In the end, he played in the only way he knows. He needed to build his innings with a strong foundation. I was reminded of a Spanish proverb: "Beware the fury of a patient man." And it was certainly, a furious innings by the gentlest of souls. But the Lahore Test match was to offer another feast. With Wasim Akram rested, Shoaib Akhtar was handed the new ball. On a previous day, there had been a mild dust-storm with hot, gusty winds causing the trees outside the ground to sway. But this was nothing compared to the storm that would hit the Gaddafi Stadium as Shoaib ran in to bowl.

It was not his pace alone, it was his deadly accuracy and whether or not he had crossed the 100 mph barrier was immaterial. The first four wickets he took were all bowled. He didn't make a mess of the wickets. He was like a dentist extracting a tooth, hitting one stump and sending it cartwheeling. He was to take two more wickets, ending with the staggering figures of 6 for 11. Rightly, he did not bowl in the second innings. Shoaib's fitness has held up well and I wouldn't mind if he did not play in Karachi.

With Inzamam's triple century and Shoaib's fantastic bowling, we tend to lose sight of Imran Nazir's hundred. Imran has been in and out of the Pakistan team and this has affected his confidence. When he had first played for Pakistan, he brought to his batting all the brilliance as well as the brashness of youth. I had rated him as the most exciting batsman since Inzamam.

He was cocky, to the point of arrogance and this did not sit down too well for so young a batsman. He was getting out, playing outrageous shots and it cost him his place in the team. When that happens, the player generally disappears. But though he was out of sight, he was not out of mind.

The selectors took a bold decision to pick him for Sharjah and Imran grabbed the chance with both hands. But he still lacked the skill to turn fifties into hundreds. He seemed to lose concentration. I don't know whether his place in the team is settled but he's going to be playing a lot of cricket and hopefully making a lot of runs, provided he can keep both feet on the ground.

Someone mentioned to me that Mark Richardson, the New Zealand batsman, had some very unkind things to say about conditions in Pakistan. He is not the first visitor to have done so. It is not easy to adjust to the subcontinent and for many, it provides a cultural shock. One has to have a certain upbringing and a certain level of education to enjoy a foreign country.

On my part, I thoroughly enjoyed myself in New Zealand. I found it a beautiful country and the people were friendly. The hotels where I stayed were not as good as the hotels where the New Zealand team have been staying. But I had no complaints. I hope by now Richardson has settled down though it is entirely possible that he is shell-shocked, this time not by the unhygienic conditions, but by Shoaib Akhtar's bowling.

I am happy to see that Saeed Anwar has been included in the squad for the Test in Karachi. It will take him some time to regain his fluency but he needs to get out there in the middle and it shouldn't be long before he will find his magical touch. Pakistan finished the Lahore Test in three days. But New Zealand made a better fist of it in the second innings. Pakistan should take nothing for granted at Karachi. Pakistan is re-learning how to win and this learning process should continue. No room for complacency.

© Dawn