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It is very rare to see a designated batter roll his arm over and get success. Over the years, we have seen players like Rahul Dravid, Ricky Ponting and MS Dhoni bowl in international cricket. But, at sometime they had bowled few overs in domestic cricket. On June 12, 2022, Nicholas Pooran, a wicketkeeper-batter, introduced himself in the attack. The newly-elected wicketkeeper had bowled just three balls in 50-over cricket before and just one more in First-Class game but he ended up becoming the most successful bowler for his team against a team like Pakistan.
Maiden ODI wicket
Pooran got as many as four wickets, bowling his full quota of 10 overs. The 26-year-old took the ball when openers Fakhar Zaman and Imam-ul-Haq were going strong. In his first over, he got good turn but conceded five runs. Next over, he got hit for a boundary by Zaman. Despite the boundary, he gave himself another over. The right-arm off-spinner got the wicket of Zaman as he went for a sweep and missed the ball. This was his maiden ODI wicket.
Two in one over
From the other end, Hayden Walsh got the wicket of in-form batter Babar Azam. High-on-confidence Pooran continued to bowl. In his sixth over, he struck twice and got the wicket of Imam and Mohammad Haris. Like Zaman, Imam went for a sweep shot but ended up top-edging it to Shai Hope. Haris went to play a cut shot but was caught at backward point by Akeal Hosein and bagged a two-ball duck.
The big wicket
Pooran continued to bowl and got the big wicket of Mohammad Rizwan in his next over. He opted for DRS after a huge appeal and the UltraEdge showed a clear spike. Pooran took his fourth wicket in his seventh over. He bowled 10 overs on the trot from one end. He conceded 48 runs and got four crucial wickets in the middle overs.
Shadab’s career-best
However, despite Pooran's dream spell, Pakistan went on to post 269/9 in the first innings. The sixth-wicket partnership between Khushdil Shah stabilised the innings. The two batters shared an 84-run partnership. Khushdil got out after scoring 34 runs whereas Shadab continued. The all-rounder went on to register his career-best ODI score. He scored 86 runs from 78 deliveries including four fours and three sixes. He batted with the tailenders and got Pakistan to a fighting total in the reduced 48-overs per side game.
