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Episode 2 in my spinners series for AYALAC?
At the 2003 world cup, Africa was in crisis, cricket speaking, not just the normal ©rap about poverty and civil wars.
South Africa’s mathematic skills departed, Zimbabwe had Mugabe issues and Namibia was raped and pillaged by Glenn McGrath.
Suddenly the only African side left was Kenya.
They won games based on solid batting from solid men, a great flag, teams refusing to visit them and they had a couple of spinners who were bowling really well.
Big Daddy and I were in Durban on the 15th of March 2003 to see the unbeaten Australian team take on the well flagged Kenyans.
Australia had kept Kenya to 170 odd with Brett Lee taking a hattrick. Then Gilchrist and Hayden got off to a flyer, but the game didn’t start until a 39 year old balding left arm orthodox chap came on.
Aasif Karim is the sort of player every minnow seems to have. Just a struggling guy who knows his game well, but is no where near international level. His International career spanned 23 years. He played in three world cups and one as captain, he was a legend of Kenyan cricket, offcourse most of us had never heard of him.
When he came to the wicket there was no fan fare or anything, the crowd was pro Kenya, as most of the crowd were Indians or South Africans. At that stage they had little to cheer about.
Karim’s action was similar to that of most elderly gents who bowl left arm orthodox, no extravagant movements, just a smooth easy entry to the crease and then a gentlemanly turn of the fingers.
He had probably done it a billion times before, but something happened this day, if the same thing happened in America they would have made a film about it, starring Kevin Costner.
Karim’s first wicket probably would have been enough, getting Ponting out is something you can tell your grand kids, and luckily for Karim he probably already has grandkids.
Next over he had Lehmann and Hogg out. Not as mantle piece worthy, but still good bar room discussion.
Even though he had 3 wickets, it really isn’t that the makes his spell special, it was the next few overs, when two of the most aggressive batsmen in Australia, Andrew Symonds and Ian Harvey treated the man like he was Murali bolwing tamil grenades in Kandy.
In my whole life of watching Ian Harvey I have never seen him more watchful. Symonds was even more cautious. Karim’s line and length was $exy as hell, he just kept probing, and both batsmen seemed trapped on the crease.
Australia eventually made the decision to win the game from the other end. They essentially played a dead bat to Karim.
They did end up hit the winning runs off him. Which blew his figures out.
8.2 – 6 – 7 – 3
Not bad for a 39 year old Kenyan against a team that would make 360 in the final about a week later.
And he didn’t do it on a dust bowl, just a normal pitch with clever bowling, twas a beautiful sight.
Other great minnow spinners.
Sluggo from Bermuda, possibly the sexiest cricketer playing today.
John Davison from Canada, fastest hundred in WC history.
Daniel Vettori always plays well for New Zealand.
