By: Omair Alavi He was simply born in the wrong era – legendary leg spinner Abdul Qadir would have been ideal for modern day cricket. He could not only mesmerize the opposition but also hit the ball out of the park, something that modern day cricketers must be good at. Today, he celebrates his 62nd…
SAMAA | Omair Alavi – Posted: Sep 15, 2017 | Last Updated: 4 years ago
By: Omair Alavi
He was simply born in the wrong era – legendary leg spinner Abdul Qadir would have been ideal for modern day cricket. He could not only mesmerize the opposition but also hit the ball out of the park, something that modern day cricketers must be good at. Today, he celebrates his 62nd birthday and we decide to bring to you some of his best performances that will surely take you down the memory lane.
Thunder Down Under
Abdul Qadir was one of the main inspirations behind Shane Warne’s ascent and who knows, Warnie might have been impressed with his guru when he took as many as 5 wickets Down Under!
Winning the battle against the best
The West Indian cricketers were considered to be unbeatable when it came to Test Cricket since they had the best pacers and the best batsmen but when Pakistan challenged them with the best spinner, they had no answer. In this clip, you will see how Qadir managed to bamboozle the two-time World Champions when they toured Pakistan in the late 80s.
Showing the arch rivals how it’s done!
When batsmen from the land of spinners crossed the border for the first time in 2 decades, Abdul Qadir was ready for them. Along with his captain Imran Khan, the two dominated the proceedings with Qadir using all in his arsenal to win the battle.
When Qadir conquered the world
In 1987, a strong Pakistan Cricket team went to England and came back victorious due to Qadir’s heroics with the ball. No English batsmen had an answer to his flippers, his wrong un, his straighter ones and of course, his leg spin. This English team was considered the best batting side of the world at that time and when Qadir conquered them, it was like conquering the world!
Qadir Bats Pakistan To Victory
They were two-time World Champions; on the other side were the hosts. The West Indians were stunned when Qadir blasted 10 runs (in fact it was 12, if you consider the 2 runs after achieving the target) off 3 deliveries bowled by Courtney Walsh in a crucial encounter of the 1987 World Cup. Look at Saleem Jaffer who took a crucial run to bring back Qadir on strike and nearly ran himself out. Why was he trying to reach the other side is still a mystery!
