With a run-up as graceful as a cheetah going for a kill, Shahid Munir comes in to bowl, accelerates and releases his thunder-balls, with the speed of greased lightening. The batsman, at the receiving end, lunges forward to defend, but the ball has already whizzed past him, swinging into the hands of the wicket-keeper. Whew! Lucky to survive. The next delivery could possibly be an in-swinging yorker, to which the batsman is a trifle late, reading and reacting, and finds the wickets flattened.
Shahid Munir is one of the quickest bowlers in the Midwest Cricket Conference. He is not just a ‘quickie’ who can bowl. He swings the ball both ways, to keep the batsman guessing. Shahid stupefies batsmen with ‘toe-crunching’ yorkers and well disguised ‘slower ones’. For the 2005 Season, Shahid is the #3 bowler in the Midwest Cricket Conference with 34 wickets, at 4.36 runs per over, reserving his best for Wildcats, 5 for 36 off 8 overs!
As a batsman, Shahid has all the strokes in the book and some more. Blessed with a good eye, balance and timing, he makes stroke-play so easy and effortless, like the great Viv Richards. Shahid seemingly caresses the ball, on its way to the boundary. He relishes quick bowling – the short- pitched stuff that he pulls and hooks for fours and sixes. The fuller length ones are driven in the ‘vee’, through extra-cover, long-on, long-off. Shahid is essentially a classic batsman, who nudges and strokes the ball to pierce the field. Shahid steals sharp singles, converts singles to twos and twos into threes. For the 2005 Season, Shahid is the #8 batsman amassing 435 runs, with one fifty and one century - reserving his highest knock for Book Club - 112 with five fours and ten sixes!
Shahid is a complete cricketer. – batsman, bowler, fielder and Team player. Though he started his career as an opening batsman and opening bowler, for Pak Gymkhana, Shahid bowls first or second change and bats at 4, 5, 6 or 7. Again, he paces his inning based on the need of the Team. No wonder, Pak Gymkhana won the 20/20 Night Cricket Tournament Championships for 2004 and 2005 and are the favorites going into the Division I Finals, against the Wildcats, Sunday, October 16, 2005.
Shahid, the person, is shy and unassuming. Born in Sialkot, Pakistan, Shahid played for Punjab University, and earned his MBA degree as well. He enjoys going out with friends, movies and music – Punjabi Bhangda, Qawali – Ibrar-Ul-Haq and Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan.
Shahid was the only player in the Midwest Cricket Conference to be selected for the US Team to tour Canada in 2005
Written by Zafer Hameed, Elgin CC (Please send your comments to zafer@midwestcricket.org)
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