Pakistani Cricket Playes: Saeed Anwar

Saeed Anwar Biography

Source(google.com.pk)

Saeed Anwar is a former Pakistani cricketer who was an opening batsman. He is most notable for scoring 194 runs against India in Chennai, the highest in any One Day International. He was an opener for Pakistan and generally opened with aamer Sohail.

Education

Saeed Anwar graduated from NED University, Karachi in 1989 and is an engineer by profession. He was planning to go to the United States for his Master’s studies before becoming a professional test Cricketer.

Personal Life

He faced a personal tragedy in 2001, when his daughter died after a prolonged illness. As a result he turned to religion. He made his return to Cricket after a long hiatus and was one of the most consistent Pakistani batsmen in the 2003 World Cup.

On 15 August 2003, he announced his retirement from Cricket after he was dropped from the squad for the upcoming One-Day International tournament in Sharjah. He devoted his life to preaching Islam across Pakistan with the Tablighi Jamaat. He led the funeral prayers for his former team mate Wasim Akram’s spouse, Huma Akram, in Lahore. He is also believed to be responsible for Yousuf Youhana’s conversion to Islam in 2005. Youhana was the only Christian on the Pakistan cricket team till then and was said to be heavily influenced by Aanwar and the Tablighi Jamaat.

Career

An opening batsman capable of annihilating any bowling attack on his day, Anwar was an attacking batsman in one-day matches and once settled in Test matches, scored quickly and all over the field. His success came from good timing.Anwar became famous for his trademark flick. He was able to lift a ball that had pitched outside off stump for six over midwicket. Anwar’s timing and ability to score quick runs made him a crowd favourite. He was named as a Wisden Cricketer of the Year in 1997.

Anwar was the first Pakistani batsman to score a century against India on Indian soil in a one-day match. He has the highest Test batting average (59.06) of any Pakistani against Australia, and once scored three consecutive centuries against them. He scored a classic century against South Africa in Durban, which allowed Pakistan to win a Test match for the first time in South Africa.

Very strong on the off side, Saeed has the ability to play some glorious cover drives that are an absolute delight to watch. His off side shots are so good, that he is considered to be the best off side player, among left handed batsmen in the world.

The reason for his immaculate off side play is because of his sound technique. He is solid in defence, yet can destroy any bowling attack in the world in a matter of minutes. His strength in timing and the ability to play on the rise, combined with excellent execution, makes him the best opener to ever come from Pakistan...far ahead of the likes of Soahil,Raja,and the Mohammad brothers.

As a first class cricketer, Saeed used to bat in the middle order however once he made his ODI debut in Australia, he was thrust into the opener's role. He began opening the innings in domestic

cricket, and made his way back into the ODI side as a specialist opener. Despite, having lost out on precious years due to politics in the PCB, Saeed never lost hope. He made most of the limited

opportunity's that Imran Khan gave him, yet he was over looked for the likes of Shoaib Mohammad and Ramiz Raja...players who never performed outside of Pakistan.

On 21 May 1997 in Chennai, Anwar scored 194 against India in India in an ODI match. Charles Coventry equalled the feat on 16 August 2009, against Bangladesh. This was the highest individual score by any batsman in the world till Sachin Tendulkar scored an unbeaten 200 against South Africa on 24 February 2010 which later was surpassed by Virender Sehwag’s 219.

Anwar is a member of the exclusive club of batsmen who have scored three successive hundreds in ODIs, with hundreds against Sri Lanka, West Indies and Sri Lanka during the 1993–94 Champions Trophy in Sharjah. He scored two successive hundreds on three other occasions in his career, and was the first batsman to complete this feat in ODIs.

Records

Anwar (194) and Charles Coventry (194*) shared the record for highest individual score in an ODI match. Anwar has scored two or more successive hundreds on four occasions. He holds the highest Test batting average (59.06) of any Pakistani against Australia in Test matches, and made 20 hundreds in One Day Internationals as a Pakistan opening batsman.