Razaullah’s rescue attempt: A silver lining for a sinking ship

Pakistan’s tour to England to play a three test series must rank amongst the worst visits abroad made to that country since they commenced playing the sport at this level. It was not so much about the margin of defeat (0-3), as it is not altogether unusual to see sides getting blanked out on overseas visits, but the manner in which the team capitulated that caused so much consternation and led to the knee jerk reaction by the authorities at home. Seldom has such wholesome changes in its composition been wreaked on a team during the middle of a tour as this squad was subjected to, after the defeat in the second test. For good measure Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) sacked both Sarfaraz Ahmed, the chief coach, and Umar Gul, the bowling coach, while axing seven players, besides announcing an inquiry into allegations of misconduct and indiscipline. In the end these measures yielded little results as the team ended up losing the third test as well, by a margin of 8 wickets.

But Pakistan managed to provide wholesome entertainment in the last test, which brought back memories of the days of glory of this nations when they had in their ranks some of the best crowd pullers in the game. This was made by a hitherto unknown cricketer named Razaullah Meshwani, hailing from the town of Mardan in Khyber-Pakthunkhwa region, who was pitchforked into the team after the debacle in the first two tests. Flown in from Pakistan, he literally stepped out of the aeroplane to the Edgbaston stadium at Birmingham. Chosen primarily as a fast bowler who could throw his bat around a bit, he was expected to pick a few wickets and trouble batsmen with the raw pace he was reputed to generate. But Razaullah turned out to be the hero for Pakistan as the side could emerge out of the test with their heads held high, only due to his heroics with the bat.

Razaullah did contribute with the ball for Pakistan, picking up 4 wickets in the England first innings. The fact that conceded 148 runs off his 22 overs showed that his control over length and line was less than perfect, resulting in loose deliveries and easy pickings for the batsmen. However, this was not a disappointing start for a debutant whose previous experience in first class cricket amounted to a total of 8 matches and 30 wickets.

But it was Razaullah’s show with the willow in the Pakistan second innings when his side was staring into the barrel with yet another huge defeat on the cards that caught the attention of the cricketing world. He walked to the crease with his side tottering at 312 for 7 wickets, needing 8 more runs to avoid an innings defeat. One would have understood had he begun cautiously and tried to ensure that England batted again. However, Razaullah had other ideas and he began his outing to the middle with a sweetly timed boundary. He followed this by hoisting Josh Tongue for a huge sixer, which ensured that England would have to bat again. Probably, this also convinced him that clearing the ropes was easier than hitting the ball along the ground and he proceeded accordingly. Eight more sixers and three more boundaries followed quickly from his bat as he raced to a quick 81 off only 63 balls, before he was stumped by Jordan Cox off the bowling Dan Lawrence.

For the record, Pakistan set England a final innings target of 130 runs, which England achieved easily losing only 2 wickets in the process. But this innings by Razaullah helped to lighten some of the darkness brought by the black clouds that had enveloped the Pakistan cricket horizon. This performance of Razaullah served to show that there still exists a huge reservoir of amazing talent in Pakistan. It is a tribute to the game and its followers in that country that despite the collapse of cricketing infrastructure and the mess that PCB has created by its ineptitude and adhocism, players of the caliber of Razaullah emerge from there.

This performance of Razaullah brought to the mind a debut of similar impact by Tim Southee of New Zealand at Napier in March, 2008. Southee was inducted into the Kiwi side for the last match of the three test series, with the series tied 1-1. A strapping 20 year old fast bowler, Southee straightaway showed his mettle by picking up five wickets as England made a total of 253 runs in the first innings. However, New Zealand collapsed for 168 in the first knock, thus conceding a lead of 85 runs. The visitors ran up a total of 467 runs before declaring their second outing, thus setting the hosts a final innings target of 553 runs.

New Zealand chase was never on track as they lost wickets at regular intervals and they had plummeted to 329 for the loss of 8 wickets when Southee strode in bat. He went hammer and tongs at the bowling and struck a quick-fire unbeaten 77 off a mere 40 balls, before he ran out of partners. Southee’s knock included nine sixers and four boundaries, incidentally the same number struck by Razaullah at Edgbaston last week.

However, Southee could not repeat his exploits with the bat subsequently in test cricket. Despite developing a well deserved reputation for hitting sixers, he could not evolve into a full-fledged allrounder. Incidentally the knock of 77 not out in his first test remains his highest test score. However, he had an outstanding career as a bowler and ended up with 776 wickets in international cricket, including 391 in test matches. He also formed a formidable new ball partnership with Trent Boult during the second decade of this century.

This prompted one to check whether there exists any similar instance in Indian cricket where a debutant lit up the stadium with fireworks from the bat. Statistics tell us that the best performance by an Indian batsman on debut was by Shikhar Dhawan who scored 184, which came off only 174 balls with 33 boundaries and two sixers, against Australia at Mohali in March 2013. Though Rohit Sharma’s 177 (off 301 balls) and Yashasvi Jaiswal’s 171 (off 387 balls) come close in terms of runs scored on first appearance in tests, neither offered the top quality entertainment that Dhawan provided on his first appearance in test cricket. To find a close second in terms of sheer enjoyment, bordering on the naivete, shown by an Indian cricketer on his first exposure to international cricket, one has travel back by 66 years, when Australia toured India in 1959-60 for a five test series during which Budhi Kunderan made his debut.

Kunderan belongs to that rare group of cricketers who made his debut in test cricket before playing a first class match. Hailing from a very ordinary background, Kunderan was selected to play for Railways, whose coach was Lala Amarnath, then the chief national selector as well. The great Lala was so impressed by Kunderan’s talent that he asked the youngster to appear for trials before the start of the series against Australia. After being the twelfth man in the first two tests, Kunderan made his debut as a middle order batsman in Mumbai where he did not do well. He was asked to open the innings in the next test at Chennai, where he flayed the famed Aussie bowling to score a brilliant 71, out of a first innings total of 149. More than the 12 crisp boundaries that he struck in the process, what caught the eye was the gay and carefree attitude with which he took on the Australian bowlers and counter attacked them with gusto. This fearlessness was to remain Kunderan’s hallmark during his playing days. For the record Kunderan had a chequered career, playing in only 18 tests, where he scored a total of 981 runs at an average of 32.70 and struck two centuries.

Razaullah’s knock at Edgbaston warmed the hearts of cricket lovers the world over as there was an innocent spirit underlying it, which captured the essence and beauty of the game. It was refreshing to watch this youngster play the game at the highest level without a care in the world. These rare moments deserve to be treasured as they come only once in a blue moon. It will be foolhardy to expect the youngster to repeat such performances and neither should he attempt that. Instead, Razaullah would do well to focus on his strengths and try to become a top drawer fast bowler who can serve the cause of Pakistan cricket in the coming years.