This Karachi kid grew watching his seniors

This Karachi kid grew watching his seniors
ASSOCIATED PRESS

Auckland, March 12: One of the unsolved mysteries of Pakistan cricket is its reserve of quality fast bowlers.

Emerging in the shadows of the evergreen Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis is 20-year-old Mohammad Sami, a slightly built and baby-faced introvert from Karachi.

Sami took eight wickets on his international debut to destroy New Zealand in the series-opening cricket Test at Eden Park, where Pakistan clinched victory today by 299 runs.

Less than two weeks after paceman Shoaib Akhtar returned home to work on his suspect bowling action and Wasim was sidelined with an abdominal strain, Sami has become the talking point in New Zealand.

Nicknamed the “Karachi kid,” Sami needed just five balls to announce himself on the Test stage, hurtling a perfect yorker through the defences of Mark Richardson.

Ironically, he would not have played the series had Akhtar remained on the tour.“I was mentally prepared for this Test,” Sami said. “I had the backing of the seniors who told me that I would play the first Test. So I bowled like I would have done in any first-class match.”

Sami is one of the three players in the current lineup that came through the ranks of Pakistan’s under-19 squad that toured Sri Lanka last year for the junior World Cup. The other two were opener Imran Farhat and middle-order batsman Faisal Iqbal, who also made impressive international debuts here.

“I was very nervous when I started because this is my first Test,” Sami said. “Thanks to almighty, it was a dream debut.”

Sami said he had learned the art of reverse swing watching the senior players. His expert use of the bowling technique confounded the Kiwi batsman.