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I had to lead by example: Inzy
On Wednesday, when asked whether he would score a ton in his 100th Test, Inzamam had apparently remarked "No, 200".
The sight of an ungainly, overweight man hunching peculiarly over a bat that looks far too small for him should not be at the top of anyone’s list of favourite viewing pastimes. Not normally.
But if that man is Inzamam-ul-Haq and he is in form, there can be few more beautiful sights in cricket.
On Thursday, he was the consummate artist in faultless form, playing the ball as late as only he can, making batting look both exquisite and yet, strangely easy.
Inzamam himself said later that while the wicket was "good for batsmen" being out there was not easy.
"It requires just one ball to spoil things. You have to concentrate every single ball and that’s not easy.
"Plus it was hot and I was cramping after tea and required medicines."
It will be difficult to pick a shot of the day. There was that opening boundary, a confident pull off a Balaji bouncer that signalled his arrival.
There was a similar one smacked off Pathan past square leg a few minutes later. There were those two fours in the first over after lunch, one a superb cut and the other a flick that had Balaji thoroughly confused about what to do. And of course, there was that textbook cover drive that took him to 96. It blitzed by so fast that the fielders didn’t have time even to look at it.
Despite this apparent comfort, Inzamam said the pressure was immense when he walked out. “I wasn’t thinking of scoring a hundred or anything at that time. I had to lead by example. We couldn’t afford to lose another wicket and I knew I had to survive the new ball. That would be crucial.”
A half-hour into his innings, there was little doubt that he would soon be the fifth entrant to an exclusive club of men who have made hundreds in their 100th Tests.
On Wednesday, when asked whether he would score a ton in his 100th Test, Inzamam had apparently remarked "No, 200".
Many believed he was simply stating fact and that they would get to see a vintage knock. Even before he came to the crease.
Inzamam is the kind of player when he’s batting that you always think will go on to make a hundred. Or two. There’s no false modesty about him -- like when he said it was difficult to recall one or two memorable innings as he had played so many -- but he doesn’t shy away from giving praise too.
He said Younis Khan played better than he did on the day. "It was under pressure, a hundred in a second successive Test, the kind of innings we need from senior players."
On a last note, he dedicated his hundred to his father, who he said had "made the trip from Pakistan to be with me for this special 100th Test".
That would be one very proud Mr Haq sitting in the stands. Haq junior isn’t just a player. He’s a phenomenon.
