In 2011, Saeed was the only bowler in the world to have 50 test scalps, some achievement considering he missed 20% of Pakistan’s test matches that year & was struggling to break into the side at the beginning of the year. Saeed claimed 12 wickets at an average of 14 in the 2009 World T20 championship in England which Pakistan won. The following T20 World Cup, Ajmal was Pakistan’s leading wicket taker in the West Indies where they were semi finalists. During the 2009 Champions Trophy in South Africa Saeed claimed 8 wickets in the 4 encounters with 2 in each game. The following summer in England, Saeed bagged his maiden 5 wicket haul in a test match at Edgbaston after coming in for Danish Kaneria & in the same match scored a half century to avoid losing by an innings. Ajmal played only 3 one day internationals in the 2011 World Cup, but in each of them showed his class & spun webs around the batsmen as the unorthodox off spinner claimed 2 wickets at an economical rate in the knock out games against the West Indies & India.
Saeed has been MOTS in the last 3 major test series Pakistan have contested against West Indies, Sri Lanka & England & concluded each of the test series as the leading wicket taker by an uncatchable margin. Ajmal is one of the most feared opponents in world cricket nowadays & if he keeps performing as exceptionally as he has been doing there is little reason why he cannot end up as Pakistan’s best ever spinner in all seriousness.
Ajmal has blossomed late in his career after a long wait in the domestic circuit & in a short career up to now has been all over the best in the business like a rash. Saeed is known for his ‘doosra’ which he executes more dangerously than any bowler I have seen, getting bounce, turn, skid, dip, drop, revs, bite & batsmen are left guessing with a completely scrambled mindset. Saeed gets them to turn with control at pace & in different directions, all well disguised; it doesn’t come more threatening than that. In early 2012 Saeed also was ranked in the top 3 of the world bowling rankings in all 3 formats & was the only player in both test & ODI side for Wisden’s World XI in 2011.
His breakthrough really came in 2011 during the Caribbean tour where he claimed 25 wickets including 17 in the 2 match test series which was shared before going to Ireland and taking 7 wickets in 2 ODIs with a cheap 3 for and a 4 for in Belfast during the bank holiday weekend that year. Saeed was a nominee for ICC ODI player of the year in 2011 & surely will be at least a short listed nominee for the Sir Garfield Sobers trophy at the annual ICC awards dinner this year. Ajmal was discovered & introduced into the team by Pakistan’s current captain Misbah ul Haq & ever since has never looked back, going from strength to strength.
With already 47 international scalps in 2012 including 8 in 4 encounters during the 2012 Asia Cup to give his side their 2nd Asia Cup title in 3 decades, 24 in the all important 3 tests against the Poms & his maiden 5 wicket haul during the 1st ODI in Abu Dhabi in the same tour, the off spinner is clearly leading the way in 2012 in terms of most wickets. Ajmal also featured for the Dhaka Gladiators who won the inaugural BPL in the same year & went for a pricey amount in the auction, giving clear indications of his class, rating, and skilfulness.
What stands out about Ajmal is the fact that he is equally as capable to bowling to both right and left handers from over and around the wicket to challenge batsmen with different angles & lines of attack confidently. He is a genuine specialist when it comes to bowling in powerplays. He is a banker who can be relied on as he is a difficult bowler to target. Additionally, he can bowl an off spinner & doosra or the straighter variations by pitching the ball in the exact same spot. This makes him even harder to pick or read. Unlike Murali who would spin his off break a mile, he does not need to land his variations in different places to work, giving the batsmen even less clues to work with. Truly masterful at playing the ‘mind games’ to disrupt the psyche of the opposition as many would know with the unveiling of the ‘teesra’ prior to the 1st test in Dubai against England.
The manner in which Ajmal has responded and bounced back after the over against Mr Cricket in St Lucia on 14th May 2010 where he was picked off for 22 from 4 deliveries, bowling the final over is a testimony to his mental toughness, self belief & self determination. His confidence must have been shattered, but he’s come back even a better, tougher & stronger character all together.
Despite taking 120 wickets in the qualification period, 37 more than the next best, Ajmal was overlooked for ICC cricketer of the year 2012, too many people’s surprise and frustration by a 32 member panel. He was also the leading test match wicket taker during the qualification period and played an instrumental part in Pakistan’s record breaking 2011-12 season. For many, his exclusion, was inexplicable and showed a loss of credibility for the awards. Nonetheless, PCB have promised they will be holding their own ceremony in honour of his phenomenal contributions to Pakistan cricket after the ongoing WT20. To his credit, Ajmal didn’t show any anger, at least on the outside about being overlooked, vowing to hopefully win the award next year. This is applaud-able on his part as to be overlooked despite achieving so much is hard to come to grips with.
Recently Ajmal claimed 16 wickets in 6 LOIs against Australia during their tour of the Emirates for 3 ODIs and 3 T20 matches. Ajmal claimed 10 wickets in the 3 ODIs, dismissing his nemesis, Michael Hussey twice, in fact it should have been all three times, but for some reason or the other they decided against a review when replays showed it was stone dead during the deciding match in the series. Ajmal was awarded player of the match during the Twenty20 series of the tour, surprisingly his first one in limited over cricket and his first player of the match award in the limited over format also came during the course of the series. He’s achieved plenty in tests and is a modern all rounder who plays all formats and does it well, but many would consider him an even superior bowler in the shorter formats when batsmen have to attack him more and try to take him on.
Currently, during the WT20 in Sri Lanka, Ajmal is undoubtedly, Pakistan’s biggest weapon who is tipped to be one of the stars of the show. There is no doubting about his credentials as the best spinner in the world at the moment, some would say best bowler and best player as well. He goes into the tournament, having taken 2-22 against India and 4-14 against England in the warm-ups, unsurprisingly exceedingly economical, but troubling.
Such players like Ajmal unite a country, likeable characters, exceptional performers, trouble free. There is minimal disagreement from the fans about him being as good as he is, both for the men in green and the world game as a whole. There might not be many like him, but they could certainly do with more like him.
Different Deliveries
Off spinner
Off spinner slower through the air
Doosra (major weapon)
Top spinner (major weapon)
Arm ball
Straighter one
Bullet darted in full (seam up full and straight when bowling at the death in a one day game)
Drifter from around the wicket
Quicker one
Common Mode of dismissal when bowling over the wicket to a right hander (longer format)
LBW when batsmen play back, trapping the batsmen with the sharpness of the off break, length and pace the ball makes contact with the pad
Bowled through the gate conventionally
Slip or WK catch from the doosra/top spinner from the extra bounce and turn away making it difficult for a batter to middle
Caught at forward short leg from an off spinner with a batsmen prodding forward or from the top spinner with the ball popping up with the extra bite as the batsmen look to present the full face
Caught in a ‘catching position’ such as short mid wicket from a top spinner as the batsmen drives on the up
Common Mode of dismissal when bowling around the wicket to a right hander (longer format)
Caught behind or in the slips from the drifter, top-spinner or doosra at the batsmen chases it, pushes with hard hands or
just gets a top delivery angling across which he has to play
LBW from the off spinner drifting across, pitching in line and straightening
Bowled between bat and pad as the batsmen anticipates the doosra or drifter
Common Mode of dismissal when bowling around the wicket to a right hander (shorter format)
Stumped from the doosra/top spinner
Top edge from the doosra/top spinner making the stroke difficult to execute, bringing deep square leg into play
Leading edge from the doosra when the batsmen are trying to work it into the on side
Clean bowled from a quicker flatter delivery when batsmen are going for a wild swing or giving themselves room for the big shot. This is often built up with him being difficult to get away from his previous deliveries and batsmen thinking they have to force the issue or the chances of them surviving aren’t very favourable.
Batsmen taking the aerial route on the off side and unable to clear the infield from the doosra by not picking it or knowing the degree of turn
Common Mode of dismissal when bowling around the wicket to a left hander (long format)
Genuine edge from the off break, drawing the batsmen forward, dipping and spinning enough to find the edge for a slip catch
Bowled through the gate with the doosra with a gap between bat and pad when the left hander is playing for the off break
Chopping on from the doosra when looking for a cut as the ball spins back and skids on
Stumped, losing his balance when beaten by the off spinner
LBW with the doosra or straighter one with most deliveries pitching in line and turning in marginally or shooting on straight
Common Mode of dismissal when bowling around the wicket to a left hander (shorter format)
Caught in the ring, unable to get on top of the extra bounce from the top spinner or doosra when looking to drive on the up
Stumped when looking to charge by the off spinner
Clean bowled from a quicker flatter delivery when batsmen are going for a wild swing or giving themselves room for the big shot. This is often built up with him being difficult to get away from his previous deliveries and batsmen thinking they have to force the issue or the chances of them surviving aren’t very favourable and thereby try to put the pressure back on the bowler
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