Redemption of a Fallen Star
The story of an 11-year exile that the world could never justify
The young lad with a debut Test Century against the potent Sri Lankan bowling attack, promised hope that after nearly a decade, Pakistan has found a left-handed opening batsman who offered stability and consistency like the legend Saeed Anwar, but did it all went according to the script after that one match?
For a person who was not familiar with the opening role, that too in Tests, his gallant knock of 168 on the second innings of his Test Debut at Colombo’s P. Sara Oval in July 2009 was nothing less than a masterclass. His brilliance was further highlighted by the fall of those around him as the unpredictable Pakistani side went from 285–1 to 320 all out as a rampant Rangana Herath ravaged the Pakistani batsmen with his spin-wizardry. However, soon afterward, the talented yet unorthodox batsman found himself out of favor as for years to come, Chief Selectors neglected the youngster till the point he was no longer considered a youngster but a veteran with years of runs under his belt to back his claim of a well-deserved spot in the team.
However, despite the mesmerizing performance in the domestic circuit, the selectors paid no heed to his performances as his achievements became more of commonality rather than something that stood apart from the pact. Nevertheless, this did not differ from the determined batsman who was sure that someday, sooner or later, his efforts would pay off as he let his bat do the talk rather than becoming a media celebrity. While it is easy to take for granted his patience and commitment, several players proved to be fairly vocal with regards to any unfair treatment with impulsive decisions that followed. Be it Sami Aslam’s decision to switch to the United States or Amir’s dramatic retirement from International cricket in a manner that some would compare with the Lollywood actress Meera. No one, unlike Fawad, had the will to prove the selectors wrong. Did it ever bother Fawad? Did the cricketer who humbly recreates the Ertugul celebration, ever feel let down with what he saw? He did voice his frustrations at times,
‘There are a lot of reasons. I cannot enlist them on screen but favoritism is there,’
‘I don’t understand this [why I am not being picked]. However, I, at times think, that I am not destined to play for Pakistan,’
‘I’m not the only one who has faced all this. This gives me hope and I have made a commitment to myself to not give up. When you are playing a lot of people will try to bring you down and only a few will help you lift yourself up. So I try to stay with people who encourage me,’
Truth be told, no one could ever pinpoint the exact reason for the exclusion. For those who dare, each setback paves way for another opportunity, where you outshine those around you for another chance of basking yourself in glory. So what did Fawad achieve once he decided to let his performances decide his fate? 7,922 runs from 164 innings in 110 first-class appearances and averaging a truly astonishing 56.58 while notching up 26 centuries and 33 other scores between 50 and 99. These stats alone make you wonder, why he wasn’t the natural heir to the likes of Inzamam, Younis, and Misbah. Unfortunately, we gave chances to others, who may not have been at the same level as Fawad, something that even frustrated those surrounding the batsman. When most of them failed, PCB preferred giving second chances to those who already flopped rather than handing a well-deserved recall to the best performer in the local circuit.
The situation may not have been ideal but eventually, the unorthodox left-handed middle-order batsman was finally called into action by the Pakistan Cricket Team. The fairy tale did not have an ideal start as, expectedly, the team found itself in deep waters at the Oval. Name a better love story than swinging conditions and Pakistani batsman getting caught at slips! As a vivid follower of Pakistan Cricket, I feared the worst for Fawad as the transition from local conditions to the tormenting English bowler-friendly environment alone is a challenge in itself. Coupled with the pressure of saving the team from inevitable collapse, only lowered my expectations for him but despite the fact he did not have a stellar performance, the hard-fought runs displayed the sheer guts, mental toughness, and steely determination which remain unprecedented.
The problem with Pakistani Cricket is the urge for monotonous standardized players, with emphasis on batting rituals and how you present yourself to the spectators. One should ask himself if Steven Smith had been a lad from Karachi, he probably would have been ignored for years by Chief Selectors like Inzamam, Moin Khan, Mohsin Hassan Khan for being unsuitable for the International circuit as he was not good enough despite racking up scores in Quaid-e-Azam Trophy. If Malinga had been a right-handed fast bowler from Lahore, the local coaches would have spent years trying to correct his arm with a straighter arm. Does this look like a joke to you? Remember Anwar Ali or Muhammad Talha? Anwar Ali, back in his old days had one of the most beautiful in swinger, with his stellar performance in the U-19 World Cup backing this claim but what happened afterward? He was left to the attendance of local domestic coaches whose advice deprived the lad of his lethal weapon. Talha had been a speedster, clicking 150 km/h at a time but the coach of one of his teams instilled the thought in his mind that his action was illegitimate with no proof to back, on his sole judgment and forced the seamer to alter his action, taking away the X-Factor from his bowling.
If we ignore the simple batting rituals and inspect the batting dynamics as a whole, we would come across another bitter truth that one may feel shocked with. Ask yourself, are you aware of any hard-hitting Pakistani Batsman apart from Shahid Afridi or Imran Nazir? Mind you, I only included those who made an impact on the international stage. You can take your time but eventually, you will admit that you can’t recall anyone else. What’s the reason? Are we not taught how to slog? Are we incapable of smashing the ball to the Grand Stand? The thing is, we always produce flashy players with incredible hitting ability, bursting onto the scene, catching the eye of most. Remember Umar Akmal at his start? Ahmed Shehzad? Fakhar Zaman? Shahzaib Hassan? Ruthless! Fearless! They were the true embodiment of these traits, ramping sixes at fine leg against blistering bowlers like Shaun Tait, Malinga, Southee, and co. What went wrong?
So basically, when they emerged onto the big stage, they showcased their raw talent, with no one mingling with their decision making. Once they pass the initial test, they find themselves in a web of mentors who brainwash them that their playing style as a whole is unsustainable and flawed.
“YOU CAN’T SLOG EVERY BALL! DEFEND AND PLAY THROUGHOUT!”
This may sound clichéd to most but that is the bitter truth. To make things worse, we even hand debuts to such flamboyant smashers in the format that requires patience, yes, I’m talking about Tests! This whole cycle of entering as a T20 specialist to a regular in the 5-day format, coupled with the continuous reinforcement of the idea that YOU NEED TO DEFEND, grants the batsman free-of-cost self-doubt that cripples his ability as a whole. You are caught in an internal battle whether to attack or defend and this decision-making, while hardly requires a millisecond, makes or breaks a batsman who faces bowlers cannoning deliveries at 150 clicks! Ahmed Shehzad may be scoring 30 odd runs in a T20 match but at a meek run rate of 120. While most of you may disagree with what I have claimed, I would like to quote two examples that would further validate my claim.
Example 1: The English Team that recently won the World Cup
“It was the best team in the world anyway, with the best squad it could ever assemble!”
Most of you argue what I just wrote at the top but the one change most of you did not acknowledge was the change in a strategy they brought that led to this miracle. Go back some years and take a look at their World Cup squad of 2015. Ian Bell, Gary Balance, James Taylor, and Root anchored the middle order and all of them were elegant stroke players with the cover drive of Bell being more beautiful than Virat in my opinion. However, they bowed out of the tournament in the most humiliating manner, prompting a change in strategy. 4 years later, their team consisted of unorthodox flashy player who alone could change the tide of a game. Roy, Bairstow, Stokes, Butler, Morgan, which one of them is a classy stroke player who looks beautiful to the eyes? No exaggeration but I feel even my playing style appeals more to the eye than the World Cup Winning Captain. But, does that make me a better player than him? NO WAY!!!!!!!! This team could post mammoth scores of 350+ while our team hardly managed to reach 300? You would then take a look at the scorecard and be even more baffled that everyone had done well but you still didn’t reach the required total. Cricket as a whole is now super-fast and the sooner we realize that performance should not be compromised for classy batsmen, with a stop on the need for one-dimensional batsman we have been producing, the sooner we would reduce the dependence upon our bowling for winning matches for us.
Example 2: David Warner in Tests
Whenever David Warner comes out to bat, the common feature, no I am not talking about sandpaper by spectators, is the placement of two fielders on the boundary for his hook shot. Warner himself knows that he would be tempted to hook/pull with the opposition banking on him to miscue one, straight to the fielder. However, did Langer place shackles on his shot selection and ask him to block the short-pitched deliveries? The Australian Team is aware that Warner alone is capable of causing havoc beyond comprehension as his quick-fire centuries dictate the play for days to come. Ever since the retirement of Chris Rogers from the Test format, Australia has tried numerous opening combinations to partner with the dynamic Warner but miserably failed. Were they technically not sound? Were they too aggressive to not survive the demanding test cricket? Danial Harris, Cameron Bancroft, Handscomb, Will, Wade, and the rest were all that you would ideally seek in a Pakistani opener but they were failures and could never cement a place in the side. While other factors may have also contributed to their fall, long story short, the management did not ask someone to change for a specific format and let them play their natural games which reaped benefits beyond comprehension.
Switching back to the main topic, up next we had the New Zealand tour! If you thought England was the toughest tour, you may be wrong as previously, 11 years ago, it was the tour of New Zealand which acted as the grin for Fawad’s career as after being dismissed by Shane Bond, he had to wait 11 years for another chance. They say, when the going gets tough, the tough get going. This was exactly what Fawad emphasized with his almost match-saving century against the resilient Kiwi bowling comprising of the world-class Boult, Southee, and Wagner. On a pitch where wickets fell like dominos, Fawad milked runs as if he had been playing there since childhood. His gritty knock was so mesmerizing, that I embarrassingly admit, forgot to study for my final exam that was due at 2 pm, four hours after the day’s end. But if you ask me, was it worth it? HELL YEAH!!! Would do it again if I get a chance as seeing his hard work pay off, motivated me to fulfill all the plans I ever dreamt of. I even called my die-hard Fawad Alam fan but unfortunately, he was sleeping as he had no hope (ironic, right?)
Fast-forward two months, this is what South Africa’s Ace Spinner, Maharaj, has to say regarding Fawad,
“It was difficult to find the right spots to put Fawad in bother because his [batting] style is something we’ve never experienced before. Credit to him for playing a splendid knock under immense pressure.”
The same lad who was ridiculed because of his batting style is puzzling the opposition with what to do solely based on that particular style. What a fitting picture to the finale where Fawad, once again, saved a team pathetically sitting at 29 for 3. The very ground where he stamped his authority in the domestic circle turned out to be the fortress where Fawad safeguarded Pakistan cricket from jaws of defeat and humiliation. One thing’s for sure, there are many more runs waiting in the bat of the 35-year-old guy who turned his haters into admirers.
Sir, we are proud of you and ashamed of the unfair treatment you received!
