PakPassion.net recently caught up with Abdul Qadir for an exclusive interview, and sought his views on the bowling of Pakistan’s current exponent of leg-spin in Limited Overs Internationals (LOI), and its ODI and Twenty20 skipper, one Shahid Khan Afridi.

 by Nimra Ishtiaq

19 December 2010

Abdul Qadir is hailed as the father of modern leg-spin bowling and is credited with reviving this unique art in the 1980s. No less a cricketing authority than Sir Vivian Richards, arguably the greatest batsman of the modern era, considered the wily Pakistani leg-spinner as one of the toughest bowlers he ever faced. Graham Gooch, the former English captain and renowned opening batsman, once opined that Qadir was a more difficult bowler to negotiate than even the legendary Shane Warne.

When it comes to the unique intricacies of leg-spin then, Abdul Qadir is undoubtedly a Master. The spin wizard was a regular match-winner for Pakistan in the 1980s, and ended his career with 368 wickets in 171 international appearances.

PakPassion.net recently caught up with Abdul Qadir for an exclusive interview, and sought his views on the bowling of Pakistan’s current exponent of leg-spin in Limited Overs Internationals (LOI), and its ODI and Twenty20 skipper, one Shahid Khan Afridi.

Abdul Qadir was effusive in his praise for the flamboyant cricketer. “I have always maintained that Shahid is a very special cricketer and hence, should never be left out from the team. I have always backed him tremendously. I was also very vocal on television when he was dropped from the side some time ago”, stated Qadir.

In addition to being considered an oracle on the art of leg-spin, Abdul Qadir is also a keen observer of the domestic game in Pakistan, and performed the role of Chief Selector in 2009. He was credited with selecting the squad that won the ICC World Twenty20 in June 2009, though Qadir himself resigned from the coveted post barely six months into his stint.

“When I was the Chief Selector, I wanted to bring back Shahid Afridi for the home Test series against Sri Lanka. However, due to lack of support from the captain, Younis Khan and the coach, Intikhab Alam, I had to retract my decision” he revealed to PakPassion.net.

Shahid Afridi’s bowling was suffering a lean patch during early 2009. He had taken a total of just four wickets at an abysmal average of 71.75 in the last two ODI series he had featured in. However, soon thereafter, his career had a massive turnaround, and the remarkable improvement in his bowling became one of the more talked-about topics in cricket.

“Afridi’s performance with the bat had been mediocre and his bowling form had regressed at that time. I hoped he would consider his exclusion from the Test team as a wake up call and realise the need to work hard”, Qadir continued.

Qadir’s belief in Afridi was justified. “Afridi started working very hard on his bowling. I went to visit him one day when he was practising alongside my son, Usman, at one of the local camps. I spoke to him privately and told him that I would give him a gift that would bring him five wickets against the Australians in the next ODI series to be played in the UAE”.

It is no surprise that the gift Qadir refers to did indeed bring a turnaround in Afridi’s fortunes and abilities. After all, Qadir himself was known to possess a wide variety of deliveries in his armoury, including a lethal flipper, two types of googlies and leg-spins of different breaks and speeds. He has now revealed to PakPassion what this gift was: “I taught him how to bowl a googly in a way that complements his characteristic bowling action and gave him tips on field placements and on bowling certain lines and lengths in order to outwit the batsmen. I also advised him to envisage he was playing a Test match rather than another limited overs game”.

The tips appeared to have benefited Afridi who went on to exceed Qadir’s expectations by achieving career best figures of 6 wickets for 38 runs in the very first ODI against Australia. He finished as the leading wicket taker of that series. Afridi continued following Qadir’s guidelines thereafter, as was evident from his performance in the ICC World T20 in 2009, where he showcased great variety and immense control, continually flummoxing the batsmen with his googlies. He finished the tournament with 11 wickets at an impressive average of 13.54.

Afridi did acknowledge the help he received from the maestro in his Man of the Match interview after the first ODI against Australia in UAE but since then, he has talked a lot about how he has learnt and improved simply by watching old videos of himself.

Qadir, who has also provided useful tips to renowned leg-spinners Shane Warne and Anil Kumble over the years, has noticed this. “Although I firmly believe that a student should always acknowledge his teacher, I do not feel greatly offended by Afridi’s antics because in my view, my advice to him would eventually benefit my country”.

Unfortunately for Pakistan, it was not too long before Afridi drifted away from Qadir’s advice and subsequently, his bowling abilities have waned. In his 18 ODI appearances over the last twelve months, Afridi has managed a paltry 19 wickets at an unimpressive average of 45.05.

Afridi’s deteriorating bowling form was not a surprise for Abdul Qadir. “I always knew Shahid’s form would not last long. Experience has taught me that leg-spin is a tough art and one can never afford to rest on one’s laurels. Unfortunately, it appears as though Afridi is once again taking his bowling for granted and has totally forgotten the tips I gave him”, was Qadir’s conclusion.