The saga of the 1988 Pakistan Tour of the West...
From 27A
them… It was awful…It was a harrowing experience… So I thought okay and then of course, the Pakistan dictator at the time General Zia[-ul-Haq], he asked me to come back for the sake of Pakistan cricket, and of course, my main thing was, one last chance at the West Indies. So, I accept the tour, and we go to the West Indies. Five one-day matches, Pakistan wiped out five zero. So, I sat there thinking did I make the right choice?”
He paused and placed his right palm on his forehead amid another ripple of laughter.
“There are three essentials to leadership: humility, clarity and courage.” - Fuchan Yuan
The visitors arrived in Jamaica on the 3rd March, and three days later were facing a strong President’s XI in a four-day match. The local unit was led by Roger Harper, and included Phil Simmons,
Carlisle Best, Keith Arthurton, Carl Hooper, David Williams, Ian Bishop, Tony Gray, and Winston Benjamin, all of whom, at some point in their careers, donned the Maroon cap. Pakistan enjoyed more than 200 overs of batting during their two innings, having elected to take first knock, on Khan winning the toss. In the drawn affair, Salim Malik top scored in the first innings with 86, while Miandad followed his first knock of 63 with a century, 111. Khan, out of cricket for six months, had scores of 4, and 44, and captured two wickets for 64 runs in the first innings. Scores: Pakistan 332, and 271. President’s XI, 311, C Hooper, 67, and, 50 for 1.
ODIs wipe-out
First ODI – 12th March, at Sabina Park, Jamaica. Scores: West Indies, 241; G Logie, 109*, R Richardson, 84. Pakistan, 194; Curtly Ambrose, 4 for 39 [West Indies debut]. West Indies won by 47 runs.
Second ODI – 15th March, at St John’s,
Antigua. Scores: Pakistan, 166; Khan, 56. West Indies, 167 for 5; P Simmons, 54. West Indies win by five wickets.
Third ODI – 18th March, at Queen’s Park Oval, Trinidad. Scores: West Indies, 315; D Haynes, 142*, R Richardson, 78. Pakistan, 265; S Malik, 85. West Indies won by 50 runs.
This match was noted for an unusual piece of sporting generosity by Khan. Haynes was on 85 when he was given out lbw to Jaffer by Umpire Hosein, officiating in his first international. Whilst walking away, Haynes indicated that he had played the ball, and Khan withdrew the appeal and allowed him to continue his innings.
Fourth ODI – 20th March, at Queen’s Park Oval. Scores: Pakistan, 271; Rameez Raja 71, J Miandad, 59. West Indies, 272 for three wickets; G Greenidge, 66, R Richardson, 79*. West Indies won by seven wickets.
It was a battle-weary, wounded Pakistani team which arrived in Georgetown, Guyana at 11:00 am on Tuesday, 22nd March. At least the seemingly incessant island hopping was put on hold for the next 17 days as the team experienced the longest leg of the tour. Apart from being on the morale sapping end of a dead rubber, several members of the team were nursing ailments. Among the injured were Khan (who was trying to fast track himself to match fitness after his long lay-off); his new ball partner, Wasim Akram (recovering from groin injury two months earlier); and the spin duet of Abdul Qadir, the mysterious leg spinner, and Tauseef Ahmed, the off spinner, who returned home soon afterwards.
The next day, while the Pakistanis held a net session on the GDF ground at Camp Ayanganna, the team was introduced to a local masseur, Lennox Williams, who was contracted to the Guyana Cricket Board of Control. ‘Willie’, as everyone called him, had worked with both the senior and junior Guyana squads, the Shell Shield team and the Northern Telecom unit, respectively, the previous year, and also, with that year’s senior lineup which had participated in the Red Stripe Tournament. The stocky, powerfully built masseur, was a former sprinter, body builder, and karateka, who was mainly self taught, and had taken a few courses in massage therapy. As Willie set to work on the bruised muscles of the tour party, the visitors settled in.