Image Credit- AP
Following a brief
illness, Saeed Ahmed, the former captain and all-rounder for Pakistan, passed
away in Lahore at the age of 86. Saeed, who participated in 41 Test matches
between 1958 and 1973, briefly led the team in three scoreless Test matches
against England in 1969 after Hanif Mohammad was replaced. Three of his five
Test centuries were against India, out of his 2991 runs in the format. He
claimed 22 Test wickets and was a competent off-spinner.
In 1937, Saeed was
born in Jalandhar, which is now a part of Indian Punjab and was a part of
British India. In the renowned drawn Test in Bridgetown, he made his debut at
the age of 20 against the West Indies, where Hanif Mohammad batted for 970
minutes and scored 337. Before the game was eventually abandoned, Saeed and
Mohammad shared a 154-run partnership for the third wicket, with Saeed hitting
65 while the West Indies bowled 319 overs.
His effortless strength and grace, especially while driving the ball, soon won
him recognition, and he showed right away that he belonged at the top. His
lifetime batting average of 40.01 was nearly the same as his 40.02 first-class
average.
Even though his
career ended in disgrace, he was a mainstay on the Pakistan side for the
majority of it. Citing a back injury, he withdrew from the third Test for
Pakistan in 1972, following a row with Dennis Lillee during the team’s tour to
Australia. He will never play for Pakistan again after the board sent him home
for discipline because they thought he was lying.
“The PCB is saddened over the demise of one of our former Test captain and
expresses deep condolences to the family of Saeed Ahmed,” PCB chairman
Mohsin Naqvi said. “He served Pakistan with all his heart and the PCB
honours his record and services for the Test team.”
He is survived by
two sons, a daughter, and half-brother Younis Ahmed, who played four Tests for
Pakistan.