Anwar Hussain

Anwar Hussain died in Lahore on October 9, 2002, aged 82. It was 50 years to the month since he had played in Pakistan's first Test, at Delhi in 1952-53. However, his four games in that series against India realised only 42 runs and one wicket and he never represented Pakistan again. Anwar Hussain Khokar faced the first ball bowled in first-class cricket in Pakistan, though he wouldn't have been aware of that when he opened for Sind against West Punjab at Lahore in December 1947 - it was the 1990s before the match was reckoned to warrant first-class status. He had made his debut at 20 for the Muslims against The Rest in the 1940-41 Pentangular and went on to play for Northern India and Bombay in the Ranji Trophy, batting in the top half of the order and bowling fast-medium. He could also keep wicket in an emergency. After Partition, Anwar lived in Karachi. Captaining Sind against the 1948-49 West Indians, he produced two career-bests, four for 66 and a match-saving 81, whereupon he was selected for the unofficial Test in Lahore. He went to Ceylon that same season, opening the bowling in the "Tests", but somehow his performances at this level rarely reached expectations. However, his steadfast 48 against MCC at Karachi in December 1951 did his young country great service: in adding 83 with his captain, A. H. Kardar, he took Pakistan to the brink of a victory that helped secure Test status the following July. Anwar's reward was the vice-captaincy for the tour of India. In 1954-55 he captained Karachi to the final of the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy. It should have been a memorable swansong. Instead he was replaced as captain by the 20-year-old Hanif Mohammad, who along with his brothers Wazir and Raees hit a hundred in Karachi's nine-wicket victory over Combined Services. Anwar Hussain's time had passed.

Wisden Cricketers' Almanack