Azhar Mahmood ( pnb, اظہر محمود ساگر; born 28 February 1975) is a Pakistani cricket coach and former

cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by striki ...

er. He was the bowling coach of the

Pakistani national cricket team The Pakistan national cricket team or Pak cricket team, often referred to as the Shaheens (), Green Shirts, Men in Green and Cornered Tigers is administered by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB). The team is a Full Member of the International C ...

until 2019. Previously, he played Tests and ODIs for

Pakistan national cricket team The Pakistan national cricket team or Pak cricket team, often referred to as the Shaheens (), Green Shirts, Men in Green and Cornered Tigers is administered by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB). The team is a Full Member of the International ...

and county cricket in

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. Azhar is a dual

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

citizen.

Personal life

Azhar Mahmood's wedding ceremony was held in 2003; his wife is British Pakistani.

Domestic career

As a teenager, Azhar was mentored by Irfan Bhatti who played a

One Day International A One Day International (ODI) is a form of limited overs cricket, played between two teams with international status, in which each team faces a fixed number of overs, currently 50, with the game lasting up to 9 hours. The Cricket World C ...

for

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

in the early 1990s. Originally his father objected to his interest in

, but later started to appreciate it seeing his accomplishments. When not doing net practice, Azhar would fancy himself playing

tape ball A tape ball is a tennis ball wrapped in electrical tape that is often used in informal games of cricket such as street cricket, also called tape ball cricket. First pioneered in Karachi, Pakistan, the tape ball acts as an improvised cricket ba ...

cricket on the cemented pitch in the cricket ground in front of his home. He played county cricket for

Surrey Surrey () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area. ...

and in November 2007 signed a two-year deal to play for

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

. Azhar became a

British citizen British nationality law prescribes the conditions under which a person is recognised as being a national of the United Kingdom. The six different classes of British nationality each have varying degrees of civil and political rights, due to the ...

in 2011. This allowed him to play for Kent as an English-qualified player, further distancing himself from a recall to the Pakistan side. It was announced that Azhar would be playing for the

Auckland Aces The Auckland cricket team represent the Auckland region and are one of six New Zealand domestic first class cricket teams. Governed by the Auckland Cricket Association they are the most successful side having won 28 Plunket Shield titles, ten ...

as one of their overseas professionals in the 2011/12 season. In the 2012 IPL auction, Mahmood was sold to

Kings XI Punjab Punjab Kings (PBKS) are a franchise cricket team based in Mohali, Punjab, that plays in the Indian Premier League (IPL). Established in 2008 as the Kings XI Punjab (KXIP), the franchise is jointly owned by Mohit Burman, Ness Wadia, Preity Zi ...

for $200,000, double his base price of $100,000. In 2015, he was signed by KKR as replacement for

James Neesham James Douglas Sheahan Neesham (born 17 September 1990), better known as Jimmy Neesham, is a New Zealand international cricketer who has played for New Zealand cricket team. He currently plays in various T20 leagues around the globe as an All-ro ...

and played a few matches but was dropped from the squad the very next season. He along with

Isuru Udana Kande Arachchige Isuru Udana Tillakaratna ( si, ඉසුරු උදාන; born 17 February 1988) is a former Sri Lankan cricketer who represented Sri Lanka internationally in limited over formats. He currently plays domestic cricket for Ta ...

set the highest 8th wicket partnership in all forms of T20s (120) during the inaugural

SLPL The Sri Lanka Premier League (SLPL) was a Twenty20 cricket competition in Sri Lanka. It was intended to be the premier Twenty20 league in the country, held by Sri Lanka Cricket, when it replaced the Inter-Provincial Twenty20 competition. Aft ...

league in 2012.

International career

Early days

Azhar made his One-Day International debut against

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

in 1996 at Toronto Cricket Club,

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

, but did not gain major recognition until his

Test Test(s), testing, or TEST may refer to: * Test (assessment), an educational assessment intended to measure the respondents' knowledge or other abilities Arts and entertainment * ''Test'' (2013 film), an American film * ''Test'' (2014 film), ...

debut against

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

the following year at Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium,

Rawalpindi Rawalpindi ( or ; Urdu, ) is a city in the Punjab province of Pakistan. It is the fourth largest city in Pakistan after Karachi, Lahore and Faisalabad, and third largest in Punjab after Lahore and Faisalabad. Rawalpindi is next to Pakistan's ...

when he hit a century and a half-century without being dismissed. He later went on to score two more centuries against the South Africans. He joined the Pakistani team primarily as a medium pacer but he has surprised many by his batting powers. His hard hitting but orthodox batting skills have also been extremely useful in the one-day game. Unlike most Pakistani pacers who are swing bowlers, he is a useful English-style

seam bowler Seam bowling is a bowling technique in cricket whereby the ball is deliberately bowled on to its seam, to cause a random deviation when the ball bounces. Practitioners are known as ''seam bowlers'' or seamers. Seam bowling is generally classed ...

, who can chip in with wickets in time of need. In 2000, Lt-General

Tauqir Zia Tauqir Zia is a Pakistani former military officer and administrator who was the Chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) between 1999 and 2003. In December 2003, he resigned from the chairmanship of the Pakistan Cricket Board. Military care ...

, then the PCB chairman, said that the board would choose the next captain – not based on seniority alone – and if people find the choice unacceptable they will not be selected. Later – in front of some senior players – he told Azhar Mahmood that he will be the next Pakistan captain. Together they would plan the future strategy. But until now this never came to pass.

Comeback

He was recalled to the national side for the ODI series against South Africa in early 2007, but subsequently dropped when the 2007 Cricket World Cup team was announced. He was however recalled to go with the squad to the West Indies after a knee injury to

Abdul Razzaq ʻAbd al-Razzāq (ALA-LC romanization of ar, عبد الرزاق) is a male Muslim given name, and in modern usage, surname. It is built from the Arabic words '' ʻabd'' and ''al-Razzāq'', one of the names of God in the Qur'an, which give rise to ...

. It was Mahmood's 3rd World Cup. However, aside from playing in a practice match, Azhar did not get a chance to participate in the World Cup and

's early exit from the tournament meant that he was once again, in line for being axed from the national squad. Following his exclusion, Azhar returned to playing county cricket in UK. Over the years, due to his constant exclusion from the Pakistani squad and the fact that he has crossed the 30-year-old mark, it seems that Mahmood is not as interested in returning to the Pakistani line up as he once was. His weight gain, mediocre performances in ODIs, combined with the tough competition for the all rounder slot in the Pakistani line up meant that his chances for making a return to the national squad were very limited. He has previously signed with the defunct

Indian Cricket League The Indian Cricket League (ICL) was a private cricket league funded by Zee Entertainment Enterprises that operated between 2007 and 2009 in India. Its two seasons included tournaments between four international teams (World XI, India, Pakistan ...

(ICL) and had been released from his central contract.

Coaching career

In November 2016, Mehmood was appointed bowling coach of the Pakistan side. Earlier the same year, he had served 2 short stints in a similar capacity, also for the national team. Mehmood also served as the bowling coach of two PSL Franchises

Karachi Kings Karachi Kings ( ur, ; sd, ڪراچي ڪنگز) (abbreviated as KK) is a Pakistani professional franchise Twenty20 cricket team that competes in the Pakistan Super League (PSL). The team is based in Karachi, the provincial capital of Sindh, P ...

Multan Sultans Multan Sultans (Urdu: ) is a Pakistani professional Twenty20 franchise cricket team representing the city of Multan in southern Pakistan in the Pakistan Super League (PSL). The team was founded in 2017 as an additional sixth team added to the P ...

. On 3 December 2021, Mehmood has appointed by

Islamabad United Islamabad United ( ur, ) is a Pakistani professional Twenty20 franchise cricket team that competes in the Pakistan Super League (PSL). It was the inaugural champion of the Pakistan Super League. The team is based in Islamabad, the capital ci ...

as the Head Coach for their 7th season of PSL.

Trivia

Wisden ''Wisden Cricketers' Almanack'', or simply ''Wisden'', colloquially the Bible of Cricket, is a cricket reference book published annually in the United Kingdom. The description "bible of cricket" was first used in the 1930s by Alec Waugh in a ...

'' in 2001 included Azhar Mahmood's innings of 132 for

against

Kingsmead Cricket Ground Kingsmead is a cricket ground in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Its stated capacity is 25,000, although grass terracing makes up part of the viewing area. The 'end names' are the Umgeni End (north) and the Old Fort Road End (south). It is t ...

Durban Durban ( ) ( zu, eThekwini, from meaning 'the port' also called zu, eZibubulungwini for the mountain range that terminates in the area), nicknamed ''Durbs'',Ishani ChettyCity nicknames in SA and across the worldArticle on ''news24.com'' from ...

in 1997–98 as the 8th best Test Innings of All Time in its list of

Wisden 100 The Wisden 100 is a set of lists created by ''Wisden'' which attempted to objectively rate the 100 best individual innings performances in Test and One Day International cricket in each of the disciplines of batting and bowling. The Test list ...

. It mentioned – "South Africa's pace attack had more depth than at any other time in their history:

Allan Donald Allan Anthony Donald (born 20 October 1966) is a South African former cricketer who is also the current bowling coach of Bangladesh national cricket team. Often nicknamed 'White Lightning' due to his lightning quick bowling, he is considered ...

and

Shaun Pollock Shaun Maclean Pollock OIS (born 16 July 1973) is a South African cricket commentator and former cricketer, who was captain in all formats of the game. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest fast bowlers and allrounders of all time. A genu ...

supported by

Fanie de Villiers Petrus Stephanus "Fanie" de Villiers (born 13 October 1964), is a retired cricketer who played 18 Test matches and 83 One Day Internationals for South Africa as a right arm fast-medium bowler and right hand batsman between 1992 and 1998. He ...

and Lance Klusener. No surprise that Pakistan were put in to bat on a treacherous pitch – or that they should be reduced to 89 for 5. Salvation came in the form of a 22-year-old allrounder who seemed to be batting too low at No.7: his century was already his third in six Test innings against South Africa. Tucking into a great pace bowler like Donald, he scored 96 runs in boundaries while proving himself an expert shepherd of a tail: he made 90% of Pakistan's last 106 runs. They went on to win a low-scoring match by 29."

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Mahmood, Azhar 1975 births Living people British people of Punjabi descent Pakistani cricketers Pakistan One Day International cricketers Pakistan Test cricketers Kent cricketers Surrey cricketers Rawalpindi cricketers Auckland cricketers Barbados Royals cricketers Barisal Bulls cricketers Cricketers at the 1999 Cricket World Cup Cricketers at the 2003 Cricket World Cup Cricketers from Rawalpindi Cricketers who made a century on Test debut Cape Cobras cricketers Dhaka Dynamites cricketers English cricketers English cricket coaches Habib Bank Limited cricketers ICL Pakistan XI cricketers Islamabad cricketers Islamabad Leopards cricketers Islamabad United cricketers Lahore Badshahs cricketers Marylebone Cricket Club cricketers Naturalised citizens of the United Kingdom Pakistan International Airlines cricketers Pakistani cricket coaches Pakistani emigrants to the United Kingdom Punjab Kings cricketers Sydney Thunder cricketers United Bank Limited cricketers