LAHORE: Former Pakistan captain and wicket-keeper Wasim Bari (1967-1984) has been picked in the all-time XI of great Test match fielders as a specialist gloveman for being sure-handed and reliable.

The April edition of The Cricket Monthly has chosen the XI. “Behind the stumps, Bari was unobtrusively superb, highly regarded by team-mates and contemporaries. He was sure-handed and reliable to both spin and pace, in a manner that, it is fair to say, not all of his successors in the Pakistan team have been,” wrote Andy Zaltzman.

He further wrote: “Pakistan’s stalwart gloveman Wasim Bari among the last of the great old-school specialists. Bari was the first among four wicketkeepers to take seven catches in a Test innings versus New Zealand, in Auckland in 1979, all taken off seamers. and the last among five to make two or more stumpings in both innings of a Test (against Australia at the MCG in 1977, all off left-arm spinner Iqbal Qasim).

Zaltzman, in his article, elaborates that two players have been chosen from eight different Test nations with a qualification criterion of a maximum batting average and minimum bowling average of 35 and a minimum of 15 Test matches played.

The XI includes: (1) Slip: Bryan Young (NZ) 1993-1999, (2) mid off: Alec Bannerman (Aus) 1879-1893, (3) long leg: Russel Endean (SA) 1951-1958, (4) cover-point: Hemu Adhikari (Ind) 1947-1959, (5) Captain, gully: Vic Richardson (Aus) 1924-1936, (6) slip: Len Braund (Eng) 1901-1908, (7) extra cover: Gilbert Jessop (Eng) 1899-1912, (8) short leg: Eknath Solkar (Ind) 1969-1977, (9) bowler: Darren Sammy (WI) 2007-2013, (10) mid on: Upal Chandana (SL) 1999-2005, (11) wicketkeeper: Wasim Bari (Pak) 1967-19884 with (12) John Dyson (Aus) 1977-1984 as the twelfth man.

Published in Dawn, April 30th, 2017