STAFF REPORT
ISLAMABAD: In the second Test against Pakistan in the Multan Test match, the England team was bowled out for 281 runs in their first innings. Abrar Ahmed has taken 43 wickets in the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy season which is the most wickets of any bowler this year.
Interestingly, this season he took 40 wickets out of 43 at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium at an average of 17.
5 wickets or more on debut
‘Wizard spinner Sniper’ Abrar Ahmed, who made his debut for Pakistan in the Multan Test, gave the England batsmen trouble right from the start and took five wickets in the match before lunch. Wizard spinner Abrar Ahmed dismissed seven players.
Abrar is the 13th Pakistani bowler to take five or more wickets in a debut match.
As soon as the Pakistan team squad for the series against England was announced, Abrar Ahmed especially became the center of attention. This is because he is not a traditional spinner but can do the leg break jig as well as the carrom ball.
Today he bowled out England’s top five aggressive batsmen with his mystery spin, especially the carrom ball.
It should be noted that Pakistan’s cricket management was heavily criticized for not including Abrar Ahmed in the Rawalpindi Test
Highest wicket-taker in Quaid-e-Azam Trophy
This was because Abrar Ahmed took 43 wickets in this season’s Quaid-e-Azam Trophy, the most wickets by any bowler that year, and this performance led to his inclusion in the Pakistan team for the first time.
When Saqleen Mushtaq was asked a question in a press conference at Rawalpindi about giving priority to Zahid Mahmood over him, he said, “We wanted to do justice.” On one side, a boy (Zahid) who has been with the team for a year and came very close to playing in the team many times but did not get a chance.
Mushtaq said that ‘Abrar has performed well in domestic cricket but we did not want to break the line and fast track, someone when a player has been waiting for a year. Zahid was on the waiting list, so we decided to do justice to him.
His five wickets include the wickets of Zach Crawley, Ben Duckett, Joe Root, Ollie Pope and Harry Brooke and all batsmen except Joe Root have scored a century in a Pindi Test.
Abrar Ahmed inclusion relief for Pakistani team
At a time when Yasir Shah was out of form and Pakistan has tried other spinners including Nauman Ali, Abrar Ahmed’s inclusion in the Pakistan team and his excellent performance is certainly no less than a relief for the Pakistani team.
“Today is a very special day for me,” Abrar Ahmed said.
“I worked hard for this day, I can’t express my happiness in words, I request all the fans to pray for the Pakistan team and for me.”
