PSL 4: Meet Quetta Gladiator's formidable fast bowler from Lyari

Fast bowler Ghulam Mudassar achieved his biggest dream when he got selected to play for Quetta Gladiators at the ongoing Pakistan Super League (PSL).A...

By Web Desk
February 23, 2019

Fast bowler Ghulam Mudassar achieved his biggest dream when he got selected to play for Quetta Gladiators at the ongoing Pakistan Super League (PSL).

At such a tender age, the 19-year-old youth originally hails from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's Haripur Hazara, but grew up in Karachi's Lyari area notoriously known for its gang-related violence.

Mudassar's incredible cricket stint began when he was spotted by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) U-16 programme when he was 12 in 2011.

Although he played for Karachi at the time, Mudassar failed to make an impact having taken only three wickets in four games as part of the programme, he told in an interview with ESPN's Cricinfo.

When he turned 13, Mudassar was picked up by Port Qasim Authority to play the inter-department (3-day tournament) in 2012. Barely a teenager, he earned 18 wickets at 26.27 including an eight-for on debut at Islamabad's Diamond Cricket Club.

After this there was no looking back for Mudassar as he debuted in first-class cricket in 2015 for Karachi Whites. He finished with a staggering 31 wickets at 34.67 in a total of eight games.

His track record boasts a total of 19 games - 14 for Karachi Whites, four for National Bank of Pakistan and one for Pakistan A - bagging 65 wickets with 30.81. In 33 List-A games, he has 41 wickets at 37.56.

Speaking further on how he made it to PSL, Mudassar shared that he was initially selected by Lahore Qalandars where he took part in their Rising Star trials.

Although he was not selected in the XI for any game, he trained under Aaqib Javed and Mudassar Nazar. Since then he has become one of the most promising young players in Pakistan.

In 2017 and 2018, Mudassar represented Pakistan in the Asian Cricket Council Emerging Teams Cup and even earned a BPL contract.

According to Mudassar, he grew up watching his idol Wasim Akram on TV and wants to emulate him in every way. For him fast bowling is 'madness' and some control can make him an exceptional pacer. 

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