This interview was conducted before the T20 World Cup. I'd like to pass on PP's thanks to Yasir Ali for putting us in touch with Tariq.I'd also like to thank Tariq for his full and frank responses, hope you enjoy the interview...

By PakPassion Staff

PakPassion.Net: Do you come from a cricketing background?

Tariq Mahmood: Yes, my dad was an all-rounder and a very good player but he didn't play professionally.


PakPassion.Net: Who were your cricketing heroes when growing up? 

Tariq Mahmood: Michael Bevan because he was a big match player who would stay till the end and finish the game, he was the true definition of a match winner. Then there's Brian Lara, it was a real joy to watch him play. A good Lara innings was always a case of paisa vasool (getting your moneys worth). I was also a huge fan of Aamir Sohail, he was a zabardast (amazing/forceful) cricketer who had every stroke but what I loved about him was his self-belief and confidence out there on the pitch. That sort of belief is something you're born with.


PakPassion.Net: What about current players?

Tariq Mahmood: It has to be Younis Khan, he's a tough player with a lot of fight. I've always liked him a lot.


PakPassion.Net: How did you get into cricket?

Tariq Mahmood: My love of cricket comes from my dad, he's a big influence in my choosing cricket as a career. Even today I've just returned from a net session with my dad, despite being a medium pacer himself he gives me detailed instructions on how and what to bowl as well as where best to pitch the ball. I played lots of cricket growing up, I was a prolific wicket taker at the under 19 level (for my region of Sialkot) and as a result I got drafted into the Pakistan u19 squad. I took 18 wickets in the 2004 u19 World Cup. I got man of the match in the semi-final for my two wickets and match winning knock with the bat in partnership with Fawad Alam. I also took 3 wickets in the final too.


PakPassion.Net: Who would you say discovered you?

Tariq Mahmood: All credit goes to Aqib Javed, I owe him a lot. He saw me and immediately spotted that with my unique action I could make it into the Pakistan team, he has taught me so much about the game of cricket that I can't express it in words. He was available 24 hours a day, I could call him up at any time of the day and night about any question that was troubling me and he'd calmly talk me through it. He would help me understand it and work through it, he has helped me step by step. 


PakPassion.Net: Your action is just like Muralis, was this intentional or did it just develop like that?

Tariq Mahmood: It's my natural action, I've been bowling with it since before I'd even seen Murali. I only realised when other people started calling me Murali and telling me that I was bowling like him.


PakPassion.Net: When were you first told that your action might be illegal?

Tariq Mahmood: It was only following the 2004 u19 World Cup, when there was a lot of speculation over my doosra, that it became an issue. I was sent to Australia to get checked out and then came back to the NCA to make a few changes to bring the action within the allowed limits. Aqib has gone out of his way to help me, he's worked really hard to ensure that I don't lose any of my effectiveness. Every bowling action is made up of 3 or 4 frames, the NCA coaches spent a lot of time helping me find the most comfortable and natural action suited to me personally. I've watched countless videos and worked really hard to make a comeback with my new and improved action.


PakPassion.Net: Has your new action been checked?

Tariq Mahmood: It's been checked and cleared by biomechanics coaches and it's totally clear now.


PakPassion.Net: What variations can you bowl with your new action and do you still get the extravagant turn we saw in the u19 World Cup?

Tariq Mahmood: I still get as much turn as I've always had and I can still bowl all the same variations too. I have the doosra, the break, the small break, the straight one, the faster one and the sharp break. When it comes to bowling actions you just have to remember two main things, you must at all times keep complete control over your wrist and your shoulder/arm. If you can control those two things then the ball always falls where it's supposed to and you keep a good line and length too. However if you cant control those two things then you can have the sharpest brain in the world and the most powerful shoulders and wrists but it won't do you any good.


PakPassion.Net: You were the star of the 2004 u19 World Cup, what are your best memories from that period?

Tariq Mahmood: In the semi-final we were chasing a small total of 170 vs India and the batting collapsed, we lost 4 wickets for 70 runs. Aqib was the coach and although he'd never seen me bat he remembered that I'd made some runs in a side game and that I love playing under pressure. So Aqib sent me up the order knowing that I'd thrive in those circumstances and fight till the last ball. I made 45 runs, finished not out and Pakistan won the game! My other enduring memory is of the final, our bowling had to defend a low score of around 200 against the West Indies. It was another pressure situation and I was in my element, before we went out to bowl I said that I'd win the match for Pakistan and I took 3 wickets on the way to a Pakistan win.


PakPassion.Net: When you were interviewed in the u19 semi final you said that you enjoyed batting more than bowling, could you expand on why?

Tariq Mahmood: I always wanted to be a batsman, when I was playing cricket on the roof with my dad it was batting that I loved. Even now I enjoy my batting more than my bowling and what I love best is batting under pressure. Although I wanted to be a batsman I was told that I should also develop a second skill and that's how I started bowling off spin. Later on when more and more people began to tell me that I was bowling like Murali, I was advised that I should concentrate on my bowling. I began to work really hard on my bowling and the batting got left behind, it didn't get the attention that it needed to develop properly. Having to learn to adjust to bowling with a modified action over the last few years has meant that my batting has taken a back seat again because all my net time is taken up by work on my bowling.


PakPassion.Net: Is it harder to bowl to a left handed or right handed batsman?

Tariq Mahmood: It depends more on the batsman's skill than on which hand he bats with. Batsmen with shorter back lifts are the hardest to bowl to but that's the only real difference other than skill.


PakPassion.Net: Is it harder for a spinner to bowl to an orthodox batsman with a solid technique or to an aggressive hitter like Shahid Afridi?

Tariq Mahmood: I'd say Afridi because with the orthodox batsman you can dictate terms but when someone goes after your bowling then you're reacting to the batsman rather than dictating to him. 


PakPassion.Net: Have you ever bowled to Afridi?

Tariq Mahmood: When I went to the pre-tour camp, we all played in a match with Aqib as the umpire. I got Afridi out twice, once with a doosra and once with a fast break. He leaves a gap and I exploited it.


PakPassion.Net: Who are the biggest names you've taken the wickets of?

Tariq Mahmood: There's lots including Shoaib Malik, Younis Khan (lbw), Misbah Ul Haq, Mohammad Hafeez and Wajatullah Wasti. I'd have more big names if I get the chance to play more first class cricket.


PakPassion.Net: What's your method for getting batsmen out?

Tariq Mahmood: You need to watch the batsman carefully. You need to study him, test him and work out his weaknesses. When you bowl to him then you have to send the ball a little wide to make him stretch when he goes after it, then you need to make the ball come onto him so that you cramp him for room. Whilst all this is happening you should be taking mental notes. Does he play across or straight? If he plays across then keep stretching him, make him chase the ball and he will connect late and then you have him. The art of bowling is all about observing and then exploiting a batsmans weak points. 


PakPassion.Net: Saqlain Mushtaq or Muttiah Muralitharan, who has the better doosra?

Tariq Mahmood: Saqi was the innovator, he created the doosra and turned off spinners into far more dangerous bowlers than before. He took hundreds of wickets with that delivery but eventually he was worked out. Batsmen watched him and realised that when Saqi gave the ball more flight/air then it would be the doosra but when the ball was coming in quicker it would be the off break. Batsmen tend to talk and Saqi lost his edge because he became too easy to read. Murali is different, he bowls both his doosra and his off break at the same speed. That means that batsmen have to be more careful, they have to watch more closely and play the ball a lot later. Saqi may have invented the doosra but it's Murali who has exploited it fully.


PakPassion.Net: Were you told that you were called up to the pre-Sri Lankan tour camp in Karachi because your bowling is so similar to Murali? 

Tariq Mahmood: Yes they were very open with me about why I'd been called up, Aqib and Intikhab told me that they wanted the players to work out how to play Murali. But they also pointed out that this was a chance to impress everyone with my bowling, they reminded me of the way Tauseef Ahmed was called up to a camp for bowling practise and ended up playing the test match after impressing Imran Khan. Everyone appreciated my bowling and people were telling Aqib that he had a real eye for talent. They told me that I was good enough to play Test cricket and I really enjoyed the whole experience, I got a real boost from all the positive feedback. 


PakPassion.Net: Which batsmen played you well and which ones struggled?

Tariq Mahmood: They're international batsmen, so they all played well. I took many wickets in the nets but the way they played Murali in the first test shows that practising against me did have some positive effect. I bowled to everyone, from the captain all the way down to the tailenders. After the test Younis Khan credited me for the way that they were able to blunt Murali's bowling.


PakPassion.Net: Did you get the chance to meet Murali?

Tariq Mahmood: Aqib took me to meet Murali when the teams were based in Lahore waiting for the second test. Aqib had told Vaas that we have our own Murali and Vaas had told Murali who then wanted to meet me. When we arrived, Vaas called to Murali who gestured at me, I wasn't sure what he meant and so I shrugged my shoulders. Then Murali pointed at me and said 'Murali' and I nodded, then he called me over and asked me if I could speak English. I told him I couldn't and so Aqib came over to translate for us. I asked him anything and everything that I could think of and Murali answered in a very happy and friendly way, as though we'd been friends for years. He had an answer for every question about bowling that I could come up with, the most important advice he gave me that day was to keep control over myself at all times. He said that the bowler who is able to control his own reactions can stay in control of his bowling but when you lose control over yourself then you've lost control over your bowling too. I asked him about every kind of delivery and he told me how to bowl it. Murali wanted me to come back the next day and practise with him in the nets but my team Sialkot had a final and I told him that. He told me that if I didn't get picked in the final XI then I should come and see him at 9 in the morning to join him in the nets for the day. He said that he had lots of stuff to show me and that he was very happy that there was another bowler so much like him.


PakPassion.Net: So did you play the final?

Tariq Mahmood: No. The next day was the day of the Lahore attacks. We heard the news at the toss, the news was so devastating that everything else was forgotten.


PakPassion.Net: A terrible day in Pakistani history.

Tariq Mahmood: I don't know what's wrong with them? What will they achieve by destroying Pakistan? It was a very sad day for all Pakistanis.


PakPassion.Net: Maybe that's what they want? To isolate Pakistan. 

Tariq Mahmood: It's just senseless, why would you do something to hurt your own nation?


PakPassion.Net: I guess we'll never know. 

PakPassion.Net: Getting back to Murali, the net session of your dreams wasnt to be?

Tariq Mahmood: The verbal pointers alone have helped me to improve my game a lot. It was the chance of a lifetime for me, Murali had said that when he wasn't involved with the test match, he would spend time in the nets with me. Bowling in the nets with Murali would've been a dream come true, the other missed opportunity was the media one. Two Murali's bowling together.


PakPassion.Net: I can imagine the headline now. As one leaves, the next one arrives.

Tariq Mahmood: Exactly. It may have helped my selection chances too.


PakPassion.Net: You prepared the Pakistan players for Murali but what about the Pakistani Mendis (Aslam Sattar), was he similar to Mendis?

Tariq Mahmood: Yes, he was just like him. Aslam's googly needs more control but other than that he's just like Mendis. He's working hard, we both are.


PakPassion.Net: If both of you make it into the Pakistan team then we'll have our own Murali and Mendis.

Tariq Mahmood: (laughs) That be something, wouldn't it!!


PakPassion.Net: How was Aslam's bowling at the camp?

Tariq Mahmood: He also impressed everyone, he bowled really well. Younis spent a lot of time batting against Sattar and me. So did Malik, Misbah, Kamran and Butt. Faisal Iqbal was very insistent that I bowl to him, I must've got him out 5 or 6 times per session. Younis was watching us and kept saying you're just like Murali. Younis wanted me to bowl round the wicket to him because that's what Murali does when he's struggling to get a batsman out. The Pakistani players, especially Younis, were really relaxed against Murali and Mendis. It was because of the practise they got in the nets.


PakPassion.Net: After the change to your action, you spent 2 years in district and grade II cricket re-earning your spot in first class. You took lots and lots of wickets in those two years, how are you finding the transition back to first class.

Tariq Mahmood: I'm not getting picked in the team at FC level. When I do get picked and I perform, I'm still out of the team for the next game regardless, it doesn't make any sense to me. After the u19 World Cup I've played 14 first class games to date, how can I get myself noticed or perform when I'm averaging under 3 games per year? It's even worse in one day games, since the u19 WC I've only played 7 one day games.That's almost 1 game per year. I'm left wondering what I've done wrong and why I'm not getting any chances. 


PakPassion.Net: Since you returned with your new action you've bowled really well in the few chances you've been given at FC level, why do you think you're not getting more matches?

Tariq Mahmood: I don't know. I was told that if I performed at the district and grade II level that I would get chances at first class level but it hasn't happened. It's hard just sitting on the bench, you begin to lose hope for your future and you begin to worry that your chance may never come. In Pakistan sometimes you need more than just talent and performance to get ahead.


PakPassion.Net: The player keeping you out of the Sialkot side is Nayyer Abbas and he has a really good record, what's your response to that?

Tariq Mahmood: If a player gets a run of games then even if they struggle in one or two games they will come good over the course of the run because playing cricket is what we do. The player who gets to play every game has more chance to perform than the player who plays in one game, performs in that game but then sits out the rest of the season. I can't perform if I don't get to play more than 2 games per year.


PakPassion.Net: Have you considered moving to a weaker team where you will get to play in every game, that way you'll get your chance to make your name.

Tariq Mahmood: That's what I'm planning to do. I've had a few offers from other teams but I want to move to a team that will play me on the field and not sit me on the bench. I need to play cricket in order to take wickets because if I'm not taking wickets then I can't get noticed by the national selectors and fulfill my dream of playing for Pakistan.


PakPassion.Net: Sulaman Qadir told me the same thing, he said that players who've performed at the u19 level are just warming the benches for first class teams.

Tariq Mahmood: That's very true. I'm the sort of bowler who is dying to play and show everyone what I'm capable of, I won't let you down if you pick me but first you have to pick me. 


PakPassion.Net: What's the difference in quality between first class and grade II?

Tariq Mahmood: If Grade II is a pond then first class cricket is the ocean, it's full of sharks and big fish. I really enjoy taking the wickets of first class cricketers because they are a class apart from those found in grade II. Anyone can be a big fish in grade II but those big fish are like goldfish compared to the average first class cricketer.


PakPassion.Net: How do you rate your chances of playing for Pakistan?

Tariq Mahmood: Insha Allah I'd say I have a 90% chance of playing for Pakistan. I have to be positive, I wont give up on my dreams. All I need is one full season of domestic cricket and then you'll see my piling up the wickets. I'm ready, I'm hungry and all I need is the opportunity to show everyone what I'm capable of achieving.



Follow up to the Interview...

I called Tariq up a few days ago and he's quite upset because he wasnt even picked in the squad for the last two tournaments played before the T20 World Cup. He said he's still looking for a first class team that will play him in every game and I told him we've got our fingers crossed for him.

I also told him that I'd reminded Wasim Bari of Tariq's existence as a potential for the academy tour to South Africa. Tariq thanked me but said that he hadn't heard anything from Wasim Bari but would let me know if he does.