Pakistan Cricket Players: Saqlain Mushtaq

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Saqlain Mushtaq Biography

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Saqlain Mushtaq

Personal information

Full name Saqlain Mushtaq

Born 29 December 1976 (age 36)

Lahore, Pakistan

Batting style Right-handed

Bowling style Right arm off break

International information

National side Pakistan

Test debut (cap 134) 8 September 1995 v Sri Lanka

Last Test 1 April 2004 v India

ODI debut (cap 103) 29 September 1995 v Sri Lanka

Last ODI 7 October 2003 v South Africa

Domestic team information

Years Team

1994–2004 Pakistan Intl. Airlines

1994–1998 Islamabad

1997–2008 Surrey

2003–2004 Lahore

2007 Sussex

Career statistics

Competition Test ODI FC LA

Matches 49 169 194 323

Runs scored 927 711 3,405 1,339

Batting average 14.48 11.85 16.69 11.64

100s/50s 1/2 0/0 1/14 0/0

Top score 101* 37* 101* 38*

Balls bowled 14,070 8,770 44,634 16,062

Wickets 208 288 833 478

Bowling average 29.83 21.78 23.56 23.55

5 wickets in innings 13 6 60 7

10 wickets in match 3 n/a 15 n/a

Best bowling 8/164 5/20 8/65 5/20

Catches/stumpings 15/– 40/– 67/– 80/–

Source: ESPNcricinfo, 8 December 2009

Saqlain Mushtaq (Urdu: ثقلین مشتاق) (born 29 December 1976) is a Pakistanicricketer.[1] He is best known for pioneering the "doosra", which he employed to great effect during his career. Saqlain has not been active in international cricketsince 2004. A right-arm off break bowler, Saqlain played 49 Test matches and 169One Day Internationals (ODIs) for Pakistan, between 1995 and 2004. He took 208 and 288wickets in Tests and ODIs respectively.[2] He also scored Test Matchcentury, against New Zealand, in March 2001.[3] Former Pakistan captain Wasim Akram described him as "aggressive as a fast bowler, not afraid of getting hit, and has this total belief in himself".[4]

Contents [hide]

1 Early life

2 Career

2.1 Domestic career

2.2 International career

3 Playing style

4 Personal life

5 Records and achievements

6 Awards

6.1 Key

6.2 Test Awards

6.3 ODI Awards

7 References

8 External links

[edit]Early life

Saqlain was born on 29 December 1976, in Lahore. His father was a government clerk. He has two elder brothers, Sibtain, who also played first-class cricket for Lahore, and Zulqurnain. Saqlain played for Mohammedan Anglo-Oriental (MAO) college for three years and college won the Championship each year.[2][4]

[edit]Career

[edit]Domestic career

Saqlain represented Surrey for eight successive seasons, from 1997 to 2004. However, his time there was interrupted and his international career with Pakistaneffectively ended in 2004.[5]

In August 2005, he played his first match after recovering from injury against Bangladesh A, and took 4–87 from 35 overs bowled over two innings.[6] However that same week, in his return to the County Championship, he conceded 110 off 28 overs againstGloucestershire, taking just one wicket.[7]

In February 2006, he signed for Ireland for the C&G Trophy, along with team mate Abdul Razzaq.[5][8]

Later in February 2007, Sussex announced that Saqlain had signed a two-year contract with them. His initial requirement was to cover for fellow Pakistanis, Mushtaq Ahmed and Rana Naved-ul-Hasan who were part of Pakistan's World Cup campaign.[9] On 26 September 2007, Saqlain was released by the county on his request. On 8 October 2007 Saqlain was re-signed by Surrey.[10] On 28 October, according to Cricinfo, he was released by Surrey.

In April 2009 he joined Old Whigiftians CC[11] to play in the Surrey Championship. He took 64 wickets in his first season, including five 5 wicket hauls to earn Whits promotion to the first division. He was also involved in the youth game setup. In 2010, after relocating toLeicestershire, he joined Syston Town Cricket Club, playing in the Everards County League.[12]

In late 2010, he was training in Taunton at the facilities of Somerset County Cricket Club, whom he has now joined as a temporary spin-bowling coach for the 2011 Caribbean Twenty20 competition.[13]

[edit]International career

Saqlain made his Test debut in September 1995 playing against Sri Lanka at Arbab Niaz Stadium, Peshawar.[2] He picked up four wickets at an average of 26.75 in the first Test of the series.[14] The highlight of his Test career came in the away series against India in January/February 1999, where he achieved his first ten wicket haul in a test match. He took five-wicket hauls in the both innings of the match[15] In the first test, with India needing only 17 runs to win, Saqlain effectively sealed Pakistan's win by taking the wicket of Sachin Tendulkar who had scored 136.[16] He ended the series with twenty wickets at an average of 20.15, which earned him the Man of the Series award.[17][18] His career-best bowling in an innings came in November 2000, against England at the Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore, in a match in which he took 8 wickets for 164 runs in the first innings. The performance earned a man of the match award for him.[19]

Saqlain made his One Day International (ODI) debut in September 1995 against Sri Lanka at the Municipal Stadium, Gujranwala. He could not take a wicket, but Pakistan won the match by 9 wickets.[20] His first match winning performance came against same team in the final match of 1996 Singer Cup. He took 3 wickets in the match.[21] His career-best bowling figures in in the format were 5 wickets for 20 runs against England at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium, in October 2000.[22] He took five-wicket hauls in ODIs on six occasions.[23]

[edit]Playing style

Saqlain is credited with the invention of the "doosra", an off-spinner's delivery which is bowled with an action very similar to that of an off-break.[5] However, it spins in the opposite direction (i.e. from the leg side to the off side), easily confusing batsmen, making it a very effective weapon.[24] Saqlain became well known for this variation ball, which was integral to his success, although he received criticism for overusing it.[2] Other bowlers like Shoaib Malik, Saeed Ajmal, Muttiah Muralitharan, Ajantha Mendis, Johan Botha and Harbhajan Singh also used this delivery in international cricket.

During his time at Surrey, Saqlain worked on developing new deliveries which he called the "teesra" which means "third one" and the "chotha".[25] He used the teesra in the Indian Cricket League (ICL) while playing for Lahore Badshahs. Russel Arnold of Sri Lanka was the first player to face the teesra. He was also the first batsman to get out from a teesra as well. However little else is known about these deliveries.[26] Later, this delivery was used by Saeed Ajmal against England in 2012.[27]

His other variation was the arm ball, which again uses a similar grip as the off-break, but imparts a back-spin instead of a side-spin, and causes the ball to go straight on without turning.

[edit]Personal life

After marrying a British citizen,[28] Saqlain gained a British passport.

[edit]Records and achievements

Main article: List of international cricket five-wicket hauls by Saqlain Mushtaq

Saqlain was selected as one of the Wisden Cricketers of the Year for 2000.[4]

A statistical analysis conducted by Wisden in 2003 revealed Saqlain as the all-time greatest ODI spinner, and sixth greatest of all ODI bowlers.[1]

Was the fastest to reach the milestones of 100, 150, 200 and 250 wickets in ODIs.[29]

He was the first of only two spinners to have taken a hat-trick in an ODI (the other being Abdur Razzak), and the second of only four bowlers to have taken two ODI hat tricks (Wasim Akram, Chaminda Vaas and Lasith Malinga being the others),[30] the second of which was only the second hat-trick in a World Cup match.[31][32]

He holds the record for the most wickets in a calendar year in ODIs-69 wickets in 1997. he is also second in this elite list with 65 wickets in 1996 [33]

[edit]Awards

[edit]Key

General

Season – Year during which the series was played

Mat – Number of matches played

Batting

Runs – Runs scored in career

HS – Highest score

100 – Number of centuries scored

Avg – Runs scored per dismissal

Bowling

Wkt – Wickets taken in career