Javed Burki

This scion of an illustrious family was born in the Indian city of Meerut in 1938, when his father Gen. Wajid Ali Burki was posted there as the eye specialist to the Eastern Command of the British Indian army. Javed Burki began his first-class cricket career in Pakistan in the mid 50s, before proceeding to Oxford University for studies. He played cricket for the university as well and began his Test career shortly after his return to Pakistan. After playing in just 8 Tests, he was a surprise choice to lead the Pakistan side on its tour of England in 1962. He was just 24 years old at the time. The tour was a disaster and Pakistan were routed 4-0. Burki continued to represent Pakistan till 1969 but never captained the side again.

In all Burki played in 25 Tests, scoring 1341 runs at an average of 30.47, including 2 centuries. As captain he scored 252 runs at an average of 25.20 with a solitary century.

Hanif Mohammad

Hanif was born in Junagadh, India, in December 1934. This child prodigy was well established as the leading batsman of Pakistan when he was conferred the team captaincy in 1964. Hanif was a defensive captain who led Pakistan in 11 Tests, 4 at home and 7 overseas. Under his captaincy Pakistan won 2 tests, both at home, lost 2, both in England and drew the remaining 7 tests.

Hanif’s own batting flourished while he was the captain. He scored 881 runs during his tenure at an average of 58.93. This included 3 centuries and a top score of 203 not out. In the stand alone Test versus Australia in Melbourne in 1964, Hanif, as captain, scored 104 in the first innings and was batting on 93 in the second when a ball ricochetted off wicketkeeper Jarman’s pads onto the stumps and Hanif was incorrectly given out, depriving him of a century in each innings. Hanif’s captaincy saw the emergence of a new generation of Test players like Majid Khan, Asif Iqbal and Parvez Sajjad, who would go on to represent Pakistan with distinction.

Hanif’s total tally in 55 Tests was 3915 runs at an average of 43.99, including 12 centuries.

Saeed Ahmed

Saeed was born in Jullundur, India, in October 1937. After a stirring debut series against West Indies in 1957-58, this stylish stroke player shone brightly on Pakistan’s cricket firmament for the next few years. However, he became increasingly embroiled in disputes with the Pakistan Cricket Board and as a batsman developed uncertainty against both genuine pace and lateral movement of the ball.

Saeed took over the captaincy from Hanif for the three-match home series against England in 1968-69. His selection became an issue of contention between the Lahore and Karachi supporters of the game and the series itself was disturbed by the on-going political agitation in the country against Ayub Khan’s government. All 3 tests were drawn, with the final Test at Karachi being abandoned due to rioting in the stadium.

As captain Saeed scored 109 runs at an average of 27.25. Though he continued to play Test cricket till 1972, he never captained the side after this series. His Test tally is 2991 runs in 41 Tests, at an average of 40.41, including 5 centuries.

Intikhab Alam

Intikhab was born in the Indian city of Hoshiarpur in December 1941. This burly leg-spinner was appointed as captain of the national team for the home series against New Zealand in 1969 and continued in this role till 1975, with a break in the home series against England in 1973.

During the period of Intikhab’s captaincy Pakistan was blessed with an exceptionally strong and gifted batting line-up but were unable to translate this into victories on the ground. On more than one occasion the team crumbled in pursuit of a modest winning target. The most notable achievement of Intikhab’s reign was the 1974 tour to England when Pakistan became only the second team in test history to stay unbeaten on a full tour of England.

Intikhab captained Pakistan in 17 Tests, winning one, losing 5 and drawing 11. His individual performance as captain was 54 wickets at 31.74 runs apiece and 608 runs at an average of 22.51. His overall Test figures are 47 Tests, 125 wickets at 35.95 apiece, and 1483 runs at an average of 22.28 with a solitary century.

Majid Khan

Javed Burki’s first cousin, Majid Khan, was born in the Indian town of Ludhiana in India in September 1946. His father was, at the time, the principal of the college in Ludhiana, which is located close to their ancestral city of Jullundur.

Majid started his career as a fast bowling all-rounder, but when back problems and questions about his action threatened his bowling career, he focused increasingly on his batting. He soon blossomed into a batsman of exquisite grace and poise who acquired the befitting title of ‘Majestic’ Majid.

Majid replaced Intikhab as Pakistan’s captain for a solitary series against England in 1973 in which the English side was led by his Glamorgan colleague Tony Lewis. Three dreary, lackluster draws led to Intikhab’s re-instatement for the next series. As captain, Majid scored 214 runs at an average of 42.80 while his career figures are 63 Tests, 3931 runs at an average of 38.92 and inclusive of 8 centuries. Majid was an enthralling batsman but his detached and laid back approach was perhaps not best suited for captaincy.

Mushtaq Muhammad

Hanif’s younger brother Mushtaq was born in Junagadh, India, in November 1943. A high quality batsman and a capable leg spinner, Mushtaq took over the captaincy from Intikhab in 1976. Between then and 1979 he led Pakistan in 19 Tests, of which Pakistan won 8, lost 4 and drew 7.

Mushtaq was an astute and dynamic captain. He introduced professionalism into the role and also fought for better terms for the players. His captaincy coincided with the advent of Kerry Packer and major changes in the structure of the game. Mushtaq was able to prevail over a strong Pakistan Cricket Board, headed by its powerful chairman Abdul Hafeez Kardar, in obtaining a better deal for his team. Under his leadership Pakistan won Test matches both in Australia and the West Indies, but perhaps the most successful performance was the comprehensive series win against the touring Indian side in 1978.

As captain, Mushtaq scored 1035 runs at an average of 33.38 and took 38 wickets at 29.60 runs apiece. Overall in 57 Tests for Pakistan he made 3643 runs at an average of 39.17, including 10 hundreds. His bowling earned him 79 wickets at 29.22 runs each.

Asif Iqbal

Asif Iqbal was born in Hyderabad, Deccan, in June 1943. After starting his first-class career in India, Asif migrated to Pakistan and made his Test debut in 1964. A medium paced swing bowler, he opened the bowling for Pakistan in his early days, but gradually began concentrating more on his batting.

An attractive stroke player he was also an excellent fielder and a very fast runner between the wickets. His appointment as captain of the national side came in his final series when, in 1979-80, he led the first Pakistani team to tour India in almost 20 years. In a series clouded by allegations of irregularities Pakistan lost 2-0 and Asif announced his retirement on its conclusion.

In 6 Tests as captain Asif’s contribution was 267 runs at an average of 29.66. His overall Test record is 58 Tests, 3575 runs at an average of 38.85, with 11 centuries. He also took 53 wickets at 28.33 apiece.

In the 431 Tests that it has played so far, Pakistan has had 32 different captains. Seven of these captains, or 22%, were born in cities that are not part of present day Pakistan. If we also include ODI’s in our purview then we can add the name of an 8th captain whose town of birth is not in Pakistan. Imad Wasim, a talented left handed all-rounder, has captained Pakistan in 2 ODIs so far. He was born in the Welsh city of Swansea in the UK, where his father worked for a few years as an engineer.

Dr Salman Faridi is a senior surgeon, poet, sports aficionado and an avid reader with a private collection of over 7000 books. salmanfaridilnh@hotmail.com