This memorable picture depicts the great Australian fast Bowler Dennis Lillee on the receiving end of Taslim Arif’s bat. Dennis Lillee had a torrid time at Iqbal Stadium Faisalabad on the tour to Pakistan in 1979-80. When he tried really hard and hard but to no avail, to be successful on the featherbed presented there by the groundsman.
The ordeal provoked him into making the now-famous remark about making his grave on the side of the pitch. Wicket Keeper batsman Taslim Arif, on the other hand, would remember the Test match fondly as not only did he remain on the ground on all of its five days.
Taslim Arif scored brilliant double hundred of 210 runs on this dead surface. The highest score by any Pakistani wicketkeeper-batsman, and also turned his arm over, (capturing the wicket) as did all the rest of his colleagues in the Pakistan team.
The great Australian fast bowler Lillee went wicketless in this Test match, saying frustrated on the dead surface, whenever he dies, he should be buried beneath the match pitch. But remember West Indies’ powerful side bundled out here just 53 in 1986-87 against Pakistan. Also, this was the same ground, where the famous incident took place of Mike Gatting and Shakoor Rana was embroiled.
In 1998, Pakistan vs. Zimbabwe Test match was abandoned without being a ball bowl due to heavy fog engulfing the entire city for five days. Pakistan has won six tests here and lost five matches, and 12 matches ended without a result. The first-ever Test match at Faisalabad was played in 1978, between India vs Pakistan which was a high-scoring draw.
