Date-stamped : 15 Aug96 - 02:27 Tetley's Challenge Series Leicestershire v Pakistanis Leicester 14,15,16 August 1996 ====>REPORT (Day 1, 14 August 1996) Leicestershire bundles Pakistan out for 221 Our Cricket Correspondent There seems to be a pattern to these things. Time after time, the Pakistan batting line-up collapses against minor county attacks, then their bowlers pull it back together and the team scrapes through to yet another win - and a pound 2,500 purse in the Tetley Challenge Series. Could it be, one begins to wonder, that the touring batsmen are so confident of their ability to play the big in- nings when the chips are down at the Test level that against the coun- ties, they just can`t be bothered? Whatever the reason, Pakistan did it again against Leicestershire, collapsing to 221 all out on the opening day of the three day match at Leicester. And what is more remarkable is the fact that against a team reared on the spin of the likes of Abdul Qadir, Mushtaq Ahmed and now, Saqlain Mushtaq, it was Leicester spinners Mathew Brimson and Adrian Pearson who did the bulk of the damage, taking seven of the ten wickets to fall and ensuring that no batsman got beyond the 40 mark. Pakistan would have been considerably worse off, in fact, but for a 79 run stand for the ninth wicket between Mushtaq Ahmed and Ata ur Rehman. Mushtaq, not the kind of batsman likely to threaten the leaders in the batting averages, in fact ended up as top scorer, with 38, while Rehman chipped in with an attractive 30 before being the last man out. Earlier, Aamir Sohail made his first appearance for Pak- istan after the hand injury that had kept him out of the second Test at Headingley, and rattled up 30 runs off 58 balls with four fours before being bowled by Brimson, to give the spinner the first of his four wickets. Brimson ended up with four for 39, and Pierson got three for 44. Brief though his innings was, it was enough to give some measure of consolation to the Pakistan tour management, for Sohail showed no evidence of discomfort from his injury. The left- handed opener, thus, looks a cert for recall to the side that will take on England in the deciding Test at the Oval next week. The wicket at Leicester obviously had something to do with the poor showing by the Pakistan batsmen. Salim Malik, for instance, managed only 32 in over two hours of batting, and at one point he and Asif Mujtaba, whose place in the team for the third Test must be in doubt, could manage only 30 runs in 20 overs. At close of play on day one, Leicestershire had replied with 28 for one, opener Iain Sutcliffe being bowled off the last ball of the day`s play by Mohammad Akram. Source :: Rediff On The NeT (http://www.rediff.co.in) Contributed by Ravi (sista@*.latech.edu) ====>REPORT (Day 1, 14 August 1996) Tour Match: Mushtaq gives himself something to bowl at By Barrie Fairall at Leicester NO Waqar, no Wasim, so no real fast-lane worries for Leicestershire, then. The small matter of Mushtaq Ahmed playing a large part in the proceedings, though, could not be discounted here after the hosts turned quickly to spin yesterday and brushed aside the tourists in 91 overs. As if to underline the situation while preparing himself for events to come, Mushtaq had a long- ish look at the Grace Road wicket and emerged as the Pakistanis` top scorer. Even Mushtaq, a master of his craft, needs some- thing to bowl at and when he appeared at 142 for seven there was precious lit- tle margin for error if his side were to make a fight of it. In the event, Mushtaq survived for a shade over an hour-and-a- half, faced 76 balls and made 38. Better still, he found a willing partner in Ata-ur-Rehman, the pair adding 79 in 22 overs for the ninth wicket before Mushtaq fell to the new ball. Nor was he happy with his dismissal, departing grudgingly and rubbing his left elbow after Gordon Parsons had won an appeal for a take behind. Mushtaq, though, had given a good account of himself in taking the tourists beyond the 200 mark. This had appeared beyond their means once they had chosen to bat, Leicestershire using a wicket that had seen service three times this season for one-day matches. The tourists lost Shahid Anwar to David Millns in the fifth over in conventional fashion but then soon found themselves con- fronted by spin in the shape of Matthew Brim- son, Adrian Pier- son and Vince Clarke in an opening session into which were packed 38 overs. Brimson`s slow left-arm broke up a stubborn 48-run partnership between Saeed Anwar and Shadab Kabir when he had Saeed stumped and he also accounted for Shadab by lunch. Mushtaq apart, the only sticking point then for Leicestershire was a 139-minute stay worth 32 runs by Salim Malik. Pierson even- tually accounted for the former Pakistan captain and finished with three for 44, Brimson going one better with four for 39. Small wonder, then, that Mushtaq was bowling the fifth over when the tourists took the field, though the first spoils went to Mohammad Akram when he bowled Iain Sutcliffe with the final ball of the day. ====>REPORT (Day 2, 15 August 1996) Tour Match: Another Akram impresses By Barrie Fairall at Leicester ANOTHER day, another Akram. While Wasim put his feet up in the rundown to next week`s final Test with England, Mohammad Akram kept the flag flying for fast bowlers here when the Pakistani swept away seven Leicestershire wickets to earn applause for a career-best performance. In the process the 21-year-old rewrote the Grace Road script, hitherto a spinner`s tale, and made strong claims for inclusion in the cast for the Oval showpiece. All this while Mushtaq Ahmed was licking his lips at the prospect of rolling over the hosts with his leg-spin. As it was, Mushtaq`s only role was a secondary one, though that may change in the closing stages of this match today following some positive strokeplay from the tour- ists. This was in response to the county`s sad decline against Mohammad which left them with a 22-run first innings defi- cit. Mohammad, tall and deceptively quick, has had a handful of five-wicket hauls to his name for Rawalpindi but nothing like the seven for 51 he returned now. Mushtaq may have opened the bowling, but the thought of adding to his four Test caps saw Mohammad straining at the leash in the sunshine. Leicestershire resistance was thin on the ground, Darren Maddy mustering 31 before he became Mohammad`s second victim of the morning. That left the Australian Vince Clarke to top-score with 43 and feature in stands of 34 for the sixth and seventh wickets accompanied by Vince Wells and David Millns. A total of 40 extras also boosted the Leicestershire score, the paucity of which was soon exposed when the two Anwars, Saeed and Shahid, came together and tucked into a 118-run stand for the third wicket. It was the best and most profitable bat- ting of the contest, Saeed making 69 and Shahid still in residence on 86. ====>REPORT (Day 3, 16 August 1996) Pakistan unveil a new Mushtaq By Barrie Fairall at Leicester THE NAME Mushtaq featured top of the credits here yesterday, though leg-spin was not the cause of Leicestershire`s downfall on a Grace Road turner. Instead, it was the off-breaks of Saqlain Mushtaq, 19, that upstaged his more illustrious Pakistani namesake by taking half a dozen wickets. Saqlain`s six for 52 from 25 overs was his best return of the tour and came after Mohammad Akram`s outstand- ing display of fast bowling in the first innings. Either way, Leicestershire were on a loser, and the Pakistanis were celebrating victory with nearly 10 overs left. In the event, Akram`s seven for 51 and nine for 99 overall earned him the man-of-the-match award. The real prize, though, would come by way of inclusion in the third Test against England starting at the Oval on Thursday, while the counties may soon be vying for his services. All this may sound tough on Saqlain, who bowled superbly in helpful conditions after Leicestershire were left with the pros- pect of making 285 in 76 overs. In the event, they showed no interest whatsoever in chasing the #7,500 sponsors` cheque for a win over the tourists. This was disappointing to say the least, the cham- pionship high-fliers only three light of the full works, and eight of the team centurions this season. It was strange, too, to see opener Vince Wells, who has three double-centuries to his name, coming in at No 8. Be that as it may, James Whitaker was in good heart. The captain, who is recovering from a calf muscle in- jury, was looking beyond this reversal and towards a tilt at the title. "It`s been an all-round effort that has put us in the position we`re in," he said. "If we keep enjoying our cricket and keep on top of our game, we`ll be there or thereabouts at the end of it." This was hardly the case yesterday, however, as the tourists added 41 in 55 minutes before declaring. Ben Smith then resisted for 18 overs in making 43 and passing 1,000 runs for the sum- mer prior to becoming Saqlain`s first victim. The run-maker Wells, though, departed for a duck when he em- erged, and while David Millns and Matthew Brim- son put together a 33-run partnership for the last wicket, the result was never in doubt. Source :: Electronic Telegraph (http://www.telegraph.co.uk) Contributed by Ravi (sista@*.latech.edu)