Former Pakistan captains Fazal Mahmood and Abdul Qadir have been inducted into the Pakistan Cricket Boards Hall of Fame posthumously.
The two stalwarts have joined Hanif Mohammad, Imran Khan, Javed Miandad, Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis, and Zaheer Abbas, who were the initial inductees to the PCB Hall of Fame by virtue of being part of the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame. Fazal and Qadir were inducted following a transparent voting process.
The PCB Cricket Committee was involved in finalising the short-list comprising players who were retired from international cricket for, at least, five years. Subsequently, a 13-person independent voting panel, comprising three ICC Cricket Hall of Famers, four former Pakistan captains, and six respected members of the print and electronic media, was constituted to take part in the voting process, which was overseen by an internal auditor who also confirmed the results in favour of the inductees.
The formal inductions of all the eight PCB Hall of Famers will take place during the ongoing season. PCB Chairman Ramiz Raja said on Saturday: “It is befitting that Fazal Mahmood and Abdul Qadir, legends from two different eras, be voted by their peers and admirers into the PCB Hall of Fame for 2021. This is a testament to their enormous popularity and is also a recognition of their services to this great game.
“Fazal’s heroics in the early days introduced Pakistan cricket to the world as a force to be reckoned with and later inspired the next generations of fast bowlers. The wily, crafty, and magical Abdul Qadir revived and reignited the slowly vanishing art of wrist-spin bowling. “Fazal Mahmood and Abdul Qadir are all-time greats and truly outstanding ambassadors for Pakistan and global cricket. This is just a small token of our appreciation and gratitude towards their contributions.”
