Abdul Razzaq was once rapid enough to open the bowling and remains
composed enough to bat anywhere, though he is discovering that the
lower-order suits him nicely. His bowling - the reason he was first
noticed - is characterised by a galloping approach, accuracy, and
reverse-swing. But it is his batting that is more likely to win matches.
He boasts a prodigious array of strokes and is particularly strong
driving through cover and mid-off off both front and back foot.
He has two gears: block or blast. Cut off the big shots and Razzaq gets
bogged down, although patience is his virtue as he demonstrated in a
match-saving fifty against India in Mohali in 2005. Just prior to that
he had also played a bewilderingly slow innings in Australia, scoring
four runs in over two hours. When the occasion demands it though, as
ODIs often do, he can still slog with the best of them: England were
pillaged for a 22-ball 51 at the end of 2005. and then again for nearly
60 runs in the last three overs of an ODI in September the following
year.
It has hardly been smooth sailing though
through his career. He suffered a slump, particularly in his bowling,
between 2002 and 2004 when, though his place in the team wasn't under
threat, there was uncertainty over how best to use him. But there were
signs he was rediscovering some of his old guile if not his pace and
nip. And if the pitch is in anyway helpful to seam - as it was in his
first and only Test five-wicket haul at Karachi in 2004 or against India
at the same venue in January 2006 - he can be a proper danger. Though
Kamran Akmal's hundred overshadowed all in the Karachi win over India,
Razzaq's performance was easily his most emphatic as an allrounder: he
scored 45 and 90 as well as taking seven wickets in the match. A
combination of injuries and poor form put his Test place into question
and a knee injury days before the 2007 World Cup meant Pakistan missed
his presence in a disastrous campaign.
A
lackluster comeback to international cricket against Sri Lanka in Abu
Dhabi and mediocre performance in the practice matches saw Razzaq being
omitted from the 15-man squad for the Twenty20 World Championship and
consequently announce his retirement from international cricket. He then
went on to sign for Worcestershire towards the end of the county season
as well as signing up with the Indian Cricket League, which ruled him
out of Pakistan contention. He took back his decision to retire but
committed himself to the ICL for two seasons, during which he served the
Hyderabad Heroes as one of their star players.
After
a global amnesty and quitting the ICL, he was welcomed back to the
Pakistan fold for the World Twenty20 in England and made an immediate
impact as Pakistan won the tournament. His Test comeback also looked set
to be complete after he was included in Pakistan's 15-man squad for the
tour of Sri Lanka in June. Early in his career he promised to be
Pakistan's most complete allrounder since Imran Khan, and though for a
variety of reasons he hasn't translated that into achievement, his
country wouldn't mind having just a very solid allrounder.In 2007–2008, he played in the Indian Cricket League, playing for Hyderabad Heroes. His excellent performance in the last over during the Indian Cricket League final, allowed his team to take a 1–0 lead in the best of three finals. The finals were eventually won by Hyderabad Heroes, 2–0. During this time, his international career remained in doubt, as the Pakistan Cricket Board had banned players who participated in the unofficial league.
After playing for two seasons, he departed from the Indian Cricket League in order to be selected and play for the Pakistan national team, saying that he hoped the Pakistan Cricket Boards's ban on Indian Cricket League players would soon be revoked and that he has a desire to play for Pakistan national team once again, affirming that his retirement was not necessarily a permanent decision.
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Abdul Razzaq
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Abdul Razzaq
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