Saqlain Mushtaq: the off-spinner who gave his craft a new weapon

Saqlain Mushtaq is among those Pakistani bowlers who changed an entire department of the game through their art. In the 1990s, an off-spinner in one-day cricket was generally regarded as a bowler who held back runs in the middle overs. Saqlain showed that a finger-spinner could also turn the course of a match. He is generally credited with popularising the “doosra”, the delivery that leaves an off-spinner’s hand in exactly the same way but turns the other way after pitching. That one ball troubled batsmen and showed later generations of off-spinners a new path. His 288 wickets in 169 ODIs and 208 wickets in 49 Tests testify to a short but brilliant career¹.

Early life and start in cricket

Saqlain Mushtaq was born in Lahore on 29 December 1976². He bowled off-breaks with his right hand and batted right-handed. In domestic cricket he played for PIA and Islamabad, and soon came to the notice of the national selectors.

His Test career began against Sri Lanka in Peshawar on 8 September 1995. He was only 18 years old. In the first innings he took 2 wickets for 49 runs in 18 overs. In the same month, on 29 September 1995, he played his first ODI, also against Sri Lanka, in Gujranwala¹. Within a few months he had become a regular part of Pakistan’s bowling attack.

Wizard of one-day cricket

Saqlain became best known for his one-day cricket. He was not afraid to bowl in the last overs, when captains usually rely on fast bowlers. Batsmen found it very hard to tell his “doosra” from his straight off-break, so attempts to play big shots often ended in a lost wicket.

In December 1996 he took 5 wickets for 29 runs against Australia in Adelaide, and in September 1997 he took 5 for 45 against India in Toronto. His best ODI figures came against England in Rawalpindi on 30 October 2000, when he took 5 wickets for just 20 runs in 8 overs¹.

He was part of Pakistan’s squad at the 1996, 1999 and 2003 World Cups. Pakistan reached the final of the 1999 World Cup, and Saqlain’s hat-trick against Zimbabwe in that tournament is still remembered². His ODI bowling average was 21.78 and his economy rate 4.29, which is exceptional for any spinner. His last ODI was against South Africa in Faisalabad on 7 October 2003¹.

Long spells in Test cricket

In Test cricket Saqlain emerged as a patient bowler who could bowl for hours from the same end. In January 1999, in the famous Chennai Test, he took 5 wickets for 93 runs against India, and in November 1999 he took 6 for 46 against Australia in Hobart¹.

His best Test bowling came against England in Lahore on 15 November 2000. In that innings he carried a heavy load of 74 overs and took 8 wickets for 164 runs. His second-best performance was 7 for 66 against Zimbabwe in Bulawayo in November 2002. Over his Test career he took five or more wickets in an innings 13 times and ten wickets in a match 3 times; his best match figures were 10 wickets for 155 runs¹.

Batting was not his main role, but he did play one memorable innings. In March 2001 he remained not out on 101 off 291 balls against New Zealand in Christchurch. It is his only Test century. His last Test began against India in Multan on 28 March 2004¹.

In English county cricket he was associated with Surrey for several years, and Wisden named him among its five Cricketers of the Year for 2000².

Statistics

Source: ESPNcricinfo Statsguru¹. Figures are for his international career.

Influence and legacy

Saqlain Mushtaq’s international career lasted a little under nine years, but in that short period he changed the definition of off-spin. Before him, an off-spinner’s delivery generally turned in one direction and batsmen could read it and play accordingly. The “doosra” took that comfort away. Many off-spinners around the world later learnt the delivery and added it to their armoury, and even today, when an off-spinner bowls a ball that turns the other way, commentators mention Saqlain’s name.

His success in one-day cricket also changed the idea that a spinner plays only a defensive role in limited-overs cricket. Saqlain showed that a spinner could break the opposition’s momentum by taking wickets, even in the last overs of an innings. Together with Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis, he helped make Pakistan one of the most dangerous bowling line-ups in the world in the late 1990s. In the tradition of Pakistani spin, Saqlain’s off-spin is the second great chapter after Abdul Qadir’s leg-spin.