Mohammad Yousuf
Full name Mohammad Yousuf
Born August 27, 1974, Lahore, Punjab
Current age 39 years 246 days
Major teams Pakistan, Asia XI, Bahawalpur, Lahore,Lahore Badshahs, Lancashire, Pakistan International Airlines,Warwickshire, Water and Power Development Authority,Zarai Taraqiati Bank Limited
Batting styel Right-hand bat
Bowling style Right-arm off break
| Mat | Inns | NO | Runs | HS | Ave | BF | SR | 100 | 50 | 4s | 6s | Ct | St | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tests | 90 | 156 | 12 | 7530 | 223 | 52.29 | 14372 | 52.39 | 24 | 33 | 957 | 51 | 65 | 0 |
| ODIs | 288 | 273 | 40 | 9720 | 141* | 41.71 | 12942 | 75.10 | 15 | 64 | 785 | 90 | 58 | 0 |
| T20Is | 3 | 3 | 0 | 50 | 26 | 16.66 | 43 | 116.27 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| First-class | 141 | 239 | 20 | 10505 | 223 | 47.96 | 30 | 51 | 84 | 0 | ||||
| List A | 338 | 322 | 47 | 11026 | 141* | 40.09 | 15 | 75 | 70 | 0 | ||||
| Twenty20 | 27 | 22 | 3 | 368 | 57* | 19.36 | 337 | 109.19 | 0 | 1 | 37 | 8 | 11 | 0 |
| Mat | Inns | Balls | Runs | Wkts | BBI | BBM | Ave | Econ | SR | 4w | 5w | 10 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tests | 90 | 1 | 6 | 3 | 0 | - | - | - | 3.00 | - | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| ODIs | 288 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1/0 | 1/0 | 1.00 | 3.00 | 2.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| T20Is | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| First-class | 141 | 18 | 24 | 0 | - | - | - | 8.00 | - | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| List A | 338 | 8 | 13 | 1 | 1/0 | 1/0 | 13.00 | 9.75 | 8.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Twenty20 | 27 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | 6.00 | - | 0 | 0 | 0 |
This much is at least certain that few Pakistani batsmen have been as elegant as Mohammad Yousuf and fewer still have been as prolific, as hungry to bat as long and big.
At his best, watching Yousuf bat is an unnervingly tranquil experience, especially amid the traditional chaos of a Pakistan batting order. He has a dangerously high backlift, which makes every shot he plays, a late, unhurried afterthought, but a beautiful one. The feet take time to get going, but once they do, they dance with the best. Square and behind it on the off side are his areas, where his game is the most enchanting.
Immediately after, in 2006, came his most profitable year, in fact the most profitable for any batsman ever in a calendar year. Over 11 Tests, he scored 1788 runs with nine hundreds, breaking Sir Viv Richards' 30-year-old record. If there had been a nagging doubt that he often withered when the heat was on - and the story of his rise from extremely humble backgrounds as a member of a minority religion should've wiped those away anyway - it was erased here.
Mohammad Yousuf
Mohammad Yousuf
