This is a match report of the Pakistan vs New Zealand third test at Karachi 1976–77. Majid Khan’s glorious century before lunch and cousin Imran Khan’s removal by umpire Shujauddin for persistent short-pitched bowling at Richard Hadlee were the two outstanding features of the third Test, which, but for half-a-dozen floored chances by new wicketkeeper Shahid Asrar, would have resulted in yet another victory for Pakistan. Winning the toss for the third time in the series, Pakistan started in whirlwind fashion when Sadiq Muhammad and Majid Khan scored 147 for the first wicket.
Majid’s onslaught was so fierce that it completely demoralized New Zealand bowling. Except for Zaheer Abbas, whose repeated failures were in complete contrast to his success in the English county season, the other batsmen in the team capitalized on the advantage gained for them by Majid Khan. Young Javed Miandad scored a magnificent 206. His driving off the back foot was imperious, and in particular, he treated Richard Collinge with rare disdain.
Mushtaq Mohammad scored another professionally competent century to beef up the Pakistani total. One of his strokes, a superbly-timed drive through midwicket off Richard Collinge, was perhaps the best shot of the series. With the first four wickets down for 93, it seemed as if New Zealand had forgotten the lesson they were taught at school about staying there in the middle. However, W.K. Lees (152) and Richard Hadlee (86) batted with more determination. At this stage, Imran Khan, after having bowled three consecutive bouncers to Richard Hadlee, was removed by umpire Shujauddin.
The decision was contested by skipper Mushtaq Muhammad, but Shujauddin was in no mood to reverse his decision. The following morning, the BCCP came out with a statement that it was manifestly unfair ‘to use intimidatory bowling against non-recognized batsmen who are not technically equipped to deal with such bowling’. The BCCP also hoped that Australia and the West Indies would observe these conditions during the forthcoming tour by Pakistan. With the follow-on averted, Pakistan was declared at 290 for 5 in the second inning, leaving New Zealand 388 to win at about 70 runs an hour.
In the end, the Kiwis managed to save the match, helped by several dropped catches, especially by wicketkeeper Shahid Israr. Once again, Sarfraz Nawaz, Imran Khan, and Intikhab Alam were the main wicket-takers. Javed Miandad emerged as the ‘find’ of the series with a total of 504 in five innings and an average of 126. Many had hoped the series would prepare the Pakistan team for a tough series against Australia and the West Indies. Instead, the contest turned out to be one-sided. At no stage did New Zealand really extend Pakistan.
Read More: Pakistan vs New Zealand First Test Lahore 1976-77
