Shafiq Ahmed, a cricket coach at GEMS Modern Academy, Dubai, was restless on Monday morning. He had a cricket session to conduct for middle and primary school students, but his mind was drifting to Multan which is hosting the first Test between Pakistan and England.
Ahmed knew it was perhaps the last chance for his son, Abdullah Shafique, to save his place in the Pakistan Test team following a nightmarish run with the bat.
The classy opening batter made a glorious start to his international career, scoring hundreds against Australia, and England, and a sublime double hundred against Sri Lanka last year.
The right-hander was also Pakistan’s lone bright spot in the batting department in what was a very poor ODI World Cup for the team in India last year.
But nothing seemed to have worked for him this year as he struggled for runs.
The 24-year-old was lucky to keep his place for the high-profile series against the formidable England team at home despite enduring a torrid time in Pakistan’s embarrassing defeat to Bangladesh last month.
It was against this backdrop that Shafique went out to open the innings against England on Monday morning in what was a make-or-break match for him.
And here in Dubai, Ahmed, his father who spotted the talent in him when he was only three, was getting fidgety.
So, the veteran cricket coach did the only thing he could have done to escape the nerve-racking tension — he switched off his mobile and concentrated on training the young cricketers of GEMS Modern Academy.
“I did that because I was so nervous. Also, after I arrived at the school, I had to focus on my job,” Ahmed told the .
“If I had checked the score in between and if he (Shafique) had failed again, I would have been hurt. So, it was important for me to focus on my job.”
Ahmed had reasons to smile after he switched on the mobile as Shafiq had just scored a magnificent hundred (102) in Multan to put Pakistan in a strong position against the visiting English team.
“I was very happy when I saw the score. This was a very important match for him. He was scoring hundreds last year, and he also scored a 60 plus in the Melbourne Test. But after that, he was not able to perform. His performances have not been up to the mark. He was under pressure.”
Ahmed feels this could be a life-changing knock for his son in Test cricket, the toughest format of the game.
“As a batsman, when you are not able to score in a few matches, you are always under pressure. Even the great Sachin Tendulkar and the great Brian Lara were under pressure when they failed to score in a few matches,” he said.
“So, it was natural for him to feel the pressure. That’s why this match is so important for him, maybe this Test is the most important match of his career. I hope this will give him a great confidence boost and he can play many more Test matches for his country.”
Ahmed, who played with Ijaz Ahmed and Wasim Akram in Pakistan’s domestic cricket before becoming a full-time coach, then revealed what he told his son during that lean phase.
“I asked him to stay positive. You can always work on the technical side of the game with the team coaches, but the most important thing is to remain positive. I have always told him the same thing,” he said.
