Miandad — find of the century

Press, 11 December 1976, Page 56

Miandad — find of the century

By GRAHAM STEWART. NZPA-Reuter correspondent Karachi Just 19, with a following of starry-eyed schoolgirls acclaiming his every stroke, Javed Miandad is Pakistan’s newest idol and currently the hottest name in cricket. Miandad has already been hailed as potentially the greatest batsman Pakistan has produced. A master of classic cover drives, he burst on to the test scene in spectacular style in October, hitting 163 against New Zealand in his debut in Lahore.

Even this Was quickly surpassed as Miandad ran up a magnificent 206 in front ofj his home crowd in Karachi' in the final match of the! three-test series, becoming' the youngest-ever test player! to score a double century. The newcomer dominated: Pakistan’s more established] tun, amassing 504 runs

[during the series to top the I batting lists with an average I of 126 runs an innings. After taking apart what must be rated at best a mediocre New Zealand side, Miandad is keen to prove himself against the “big guns” as Pakistan leave this month for a tour of Australia and the West Indies. The youngster agrees the tour, with three tests in Australia and five in the West Indies, will be his baptism of fire. He will have to face the fiercest and fastest bowlers in the world — Dennis Lilee and Geoff Thomson in Australia, followed by Andy Roberts and Michael Holding in the Caribbean. But the quietly confident Miandad is looking forward to the encounters, declaring: “I'm not afraid of fast bowling.” Miandad has infused new life into the Pakistan team, not only by his uninhibited and attractive stroke play but also by his obvious aad

i infectious zest for cricket. To add to his batting skill, ; Miandad is a useful leg- [ break bowler, as he showed ' by picking up eight wickets [against New Zealand, and a ] sharp fielder, excelling in I the covers. I And to cap it all, he is the i idol of young female fans, : who shriek with delight [when he is at the crease. “It doesn’t help my con-1 [centration, but if they are' .happy, I am happy,” the] ] young hero admits with an ! impish grin. | But Miandad, who devel-i ioped a taste for western pop] [ music and fashionable 'clothes during a foray into ] English cricket earlier. this year, has quickly discovered that being a star can also 'bring problems. Several fellow-profes-, [sionals in the Pakistan team! 'put pressure on him to join' [their revolt for more money [for the forthcoming tour. He] [resisted, and is now worried' I that the older players might; [ostracise him on the five-; ; month trie. '

“I’m not interested in money, I’m not interested in the politics of cricket,” Miandad said. “I simply want to play the game and enjoy it.” One of the seven children of the late Noor Mohammad Miandad, a first-class cricketer in India before partition in 1947 — and who [died only days ago from a I heart attack — Miandad has [been keen on cricket since [the age of six, when he first [picked up a bat at school. ; At 16, he made his first- [ class debut with a Karachi i club and within a year had been acclaimed by Pakistan’s cricket overlord, Mr Abdul Hafeez Kardar, as “the find of the decade.”

After going to England with the Pakistan under-19 team two years ago and captaining the side in Sri Lanka; early last year, Miandad was I promoted to the senior team! during the World Cup com-, petition in England in June,! 1975. He then scored the double; ot 1000 runs and 100 wick-

ets in a season of English Northern League cricket before being snapped up by the county club, Sussex. In just five matches for the county last summer, the young Pakistani outshone even the England captain, Tony Grieg, rattling up 523 runs to finish fourth in the batting averages behind his compatriot, Zaheer Abbas. Miandad was hurt by recent suggestions from New Zealand players that he was weak on the leg-side. He retorted that they must have his copybook cover drives indelibly imprinted on their minds, particularly the three off consecutive balls from the burly fast bowler, Richard Collinge, which took him from 90 to 102 in his maiden test. "That showed real style and class,” conceded the affable Collinge, “but it will be the next five months in Australia and the Caribbean that will really show how much c!bm Miandad baa.'*