ISLAMABAD: Leg-spin bowling great Abdul Qadir, former West Indies batter Shivnarine Chanderpaul and Charlotte Edwards of England have been inducted into the International Cricket Council’s Hall of Fame.
The three former players will be honoured at a special ceremony before the first semifinal of the T20 World Cup between Pakistan and New Zealand at the Sydney Cricket Ground on Wednesday.
“Only the very best are honoured in this way and it is wonderful to commemorate the lasting contributions of Shivnarine, Charlotte and Abdul,” ICC chief executive Geoff Allardice said in a statement Tuesday.
🏏 171 international matches
☝️ 236 Test wickets and 132 ODI wickets
👊 “A bowler with killer instincts”Pakistan’s legendary leg-spinner has been inducted into the ICC Hall of Fame.https://t.co/KjG5ejLEOu
— ICC (@ICC) November 8, 2022
“These three ambassadors of our great game enjoyed tremendous success on the international stage and are richly deserving of their status as ICC Hall of Famers.”
Abdul Qadir, who died in 2019 at age 63, made his debut in 1977 in Lahore and went on to play 67 Tests and 104 One-Day Internationals (ODIs), claiming a total of 368 wickets.
His wrist-spin technique and dynamic bowling action were instrumental in Pakistan’s 1983 and 1987 World Cup campaigns as he outsmarted a number of great batters with his sharp googlies and flippers.
Renowned for his fairly long run-up and a unique bowling action, Abdul Qadir was almost unplayable on pitches in Pakistan and one of the favourites of then-captain Imran Khan.
After retiring from international cricket, he turned to coaching and ran a cricket academy in Lahore. He also mentored a number of leading international leg-spinners including the late Australian great Shane Warne, Mushtaq Ahmed, Danish Kaneria, Shahid Afridi and Imran Tahir, who later played for South Africa.
His son, Usman Abdul Qadir is part of Pakistan’s T20 World Cup squad in Australia, and he thanked the ICC for honouring his late father.
“It is a very big honour for the family to hear of this news,” Usman said in a statement. “We see it as a huge achievement, and one that my father would be very proud of if he was still with us today.”
Chanderpaul, widely known for his unorthodox batting stance, scored 11,867 runs in 164 Test matches at an impressive average of 51.37 during his 21-year international career. He also scored prolifically in the white-ball format, with 8,778 runs in 268 games.
“I’m grateful for the recognition and would like to enjoy the moment with family, friends and most importantly the West Indies cricket fans and fans around the world who passionately supported me throughout my career,” Chanderpaul said.
Edwards, who started her international career at 16, struck a world-record unbeaten 173 against Ireland in the World Cup in India and became England captain in 2006 before retiring in 2016 as the leading scorer in women’s Test and ODI formats.
“I loved every minute of my international career,” Edwards said, “and I’m absolutely delighted to be inducted into to the ICC Hall of Fame.”
