IN Pakistan, publication of books on sports is rare. Firstly because there are not many international publishers who have their base in the country because of security reasons and secondly, those who are in this business locally seldom venture in this direction aware of the fact that theirs could be a failed investment for lack of readership-oriented population.

A great majority of books on sports that we notice on the bookshelves are self-published like autobiographies of Hanif Mohammad and Waqar Hasan. Books on Fazal Mahmood and Javed Miandad by Oxford University Press are, of course, exceptions.

Not many in the market even on hockey or squash by local publishers.

Only recently, however, a book has come out from Lahore on the life of Alimuddin, a former opening batsman of Pakistan who died a couple of years ago at the age of 82 in London where he lived.

Aptly named A Straight Bat, the book contains essays by UK-based Dr Khadim Hussain Baloch and Mohammad Salim Parvez and a chapter by Najum Latif the curator of Bagh-i-Jinnah ground and cricket museum which is a lot more informative about Alimudddin than the rest of the book which contains mostly reports on first-class and Test matches in which Alimuddin played.

Alimuddin whom I knew from the 1950s while playing against him in first-class cricket was one of the most correct and orthodox batsman of Pakistan who made his first-class debut at the age of 12 years and 43 days for Rajasthan against Baroda in the Ranji Trophy in 1942-43.

He still remains the youngest ever to play first-class cricket.

He was the first batsman of Pakistan to make a Test hundred at the National Stadium in Karachi in 1954-55 against India. Unfortunately, however, none of the stands or enclosure is named after him to record his feat.

Only a couple of weeks ago I talked to the former captain of Pakistan Intikhab Alam who played alongside Alimuddin and now heads PCB’s domestic cricket to consider naming one of the stadium gates or a dressing room after Alimuddin to give him recognition which he firstly deserved. A plaque to remember his hundred on the front entrance of the pavilion also would remind people of what he achieved.

In 25 Tests, Alimuddin scored 1,091 runs at an average of 25.37 including two centuries and seven fifties. In first-class cricket, he scored 7,275 runs at 32.77 which also included 14 centuries. His highest was 142 for Pakistan against Worcestershire in 1954.

Published in Dawn, January 21st, 2015

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