Farewell to a Legend
After reigning for 16 years the countless hearts of the Pakistani nation, the Sultan of Multan, Inzimam Ul Haq a.k.a. Inzi bhai finally retired from cricket after retiring from one day internationals after the miserable and sorry exit of his team from the first round of the 2007 World Cup.
He shot to fame with a brilliant innings during the 92 semifinal against New Zealand. Pakistan had reached the semi’s before but it was that innings of Inzi that gave Pakistan the first ever chance to grab the world cup. And that was the only time Pakistan did.
He was termed to be the successor to Javaid Miandad, who had previously played as the backbone role of the Pakistan batting lineup. Who can forget that marvelous innings Inzimam played during the 1 day series between India in Karachi? That innings made Pakistani’s proud even after they lost the match to their arch rival. And everyone was praising Inzi’s innings.
Inzimam was criticized for being a very soft spoken captain but his “boys” found it easy to play under him. He shyed from the media and was usually a laughing stock for his english although he was very effective when talked in his own language. I personally admire him for his down to earth attitude, praising and thanking ALLAH before anything. That to me was his personality strengths.
The PCB acknowledged his services to the Pakistan Cricket by giving him a befitting farewell and the people were equally involved to make sure he got his respect. I was an eye witness to one of the legends farewell ceremony. Scores of his fans gathered on the last day of the 2nd test match between South Africa and Pakistan at Lahore. His arrival was greeted with standing applause from the audience and the opponent team. Although it was a short stay for only 3 runs, his departure was equally greeted with applause that could bring down the house. This all showed how he was loved by the people as a player.
Inzimam made his Test debut against England on June 4, 1992. Inzamam played 120 tests with an average of 49.60 and the highest of 329. He also has 25 centuries and 46 fifties to his credit.
In the ODI’s, Inzimam played his debut match against the West Indies on November 22, 1991. He scored 11739 runs from the 378 matches he played with an average of 38.52. 137 not out was his highest score in One Day.
This picture shows Inzimam Ul Haq taking guard to the last ball he faced in Test Cricket.
