Mushtaq Mohammad

An aggressive character who had all-round skills, Mushtaq Mohammad represented Pakistan with distinction like many of his other brothers. Dedication and temperament were his biggest strengths which more than compensated for his lack of natural ability. A First-class debut at the mere age of 13 spoke volumes of his credentials and he started with a bang - a half century and a five-wicket haul to kickstart the first of many great performances. A couple of years later, he made his Test debut, being the youngest player ever to get the maiden cap. After a lukewarm start to his career, Mushtaq got going with his first century that came against arch-rivals India at their den. Since then, the big runs started to flow from his blade and he relished overseas conditions a lot, as evident by his centuries in England and Australia as well as the double ton in New Zealand. A compact batsman technically, Mushtaq's temperament is what stood out, enabling him to conquer formidable opposition attacks.

Apart from being purists' delight, Mushtaq also enjoyed playing innovative and unconventional strokes. The reverse sweep, that is so common today, was unheard of in the 1970s and he was among the very few who employed it with success. Mushtaq's potency earned him a lengthy stint too, with Northamptonshire where he made a lasting impression. His flair also saw him joining the World Series bandwagon in the late 1970s and later on, took up coaching in a big way. He was in charge when Pakistan made the World Cup final in 1999. Mushtaq generally enjoyed creating benchmarks - he is only the second player to score a double century and take a five-wicket haul in the same game - a feat that he did in New Zealand. The bigger achievement, albeit disputable, is his tag of being the youngest Test debutant and centurion, a feat that stood for four decades. Though there was a near-decade span between his second and third Test tons, Mushtaq was generally consistent.

In First-class cricket, Mushtaq was a giant of extreme levels. A whopping 72 centuries, over 31000 runs and close to 1000 wickets. Phenomenal would be an understatement for this man who weaved his magic in England's county circuit for a fairly long period. Due to his batting skills, his leg spin at times got underrated. Armed with a threatening leg break, flipper and googly, Mushtaq could deceive and even bamboozle the best of batsmen. There is a feeling though that he could have achieved more with the ball, but that would be nitpicking to be honest, considering the stellar record he had as an all-rounder. Though not as gifted as his other brothers, Mushtaq beat them all when it came to FC centuries and that too by a fairly good margin. Shrewd in nature, his coaching methods were lauded and as a result, enjoyed a good time with Pakistan. Recently, he took up the role with United States of America, in a bid to improve their cricketing fortunes.

By Hariprasad Sadanandan