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Sadiq Mohammad, a left handed opening bat, was not short of familiar faces when
he made his Test debut at Karachi in October 1969. His brother Hanif
went out to open with him, while brother Mushtaq waited padded up in the
pavilion. It was the only time the three brothers played together, as
Hanif retired soon after. Sadiq was the fifth Mohammad brother to play
first class cricket in Pakistan, and the, probably apocryphal, story
goes that he was taught to bat left handed because the family wanted
some varierty. He made his first class debut, in true Pakistani style,
at the tender age of 14 and nine months. In England in 1971 he made 91
in the second innings of the Headingley Test and took his side to within
25 runs of victory.
In Australia in 1972-73 he made 81 at Adelaide and
137 in Melbourne, followed by 168 and 68 in the Wellington Test against
New Zealand. Against England in 1972-73 he had 119 in Lahore, with 40
and 43 at Lord's his best in 1974. Against West Indies in 1974-75 he
scored 98 at Karachi, with 103 against New Zealand at Hyderabad in
1976-77, followed by 105 against Australia in Melbourne. He made 81 in
Trinidad against an attack that included Roberts, Croft and Garner. On
the 1978 England tour he made 97 at Headingley. His last Tests were
against the West Indies in Pakistan in 1980-81. Sadiq was an occasional
leg spinner, which gave him an advantage when playing back of the hand
bowling. During a stint of radio commentary during a later England tour
he successfully nominated every variety delivered by Abdul Qadir before
the ball pitched.
He spent ten years in the English county championship
as an opening batsman for Gloucestershire. (Bob Harragan)
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