The “Harry Potter” of Pakistan Cricket Team Puts a Spell on England in the Second Test

Abrar Ahmed, who was only 15 years old at the time, insisted that his pals start calling him “superstar” when he got five wickets with his seductive spin bowling during a club tournament in Karachi, which is a port city in Pakistan.

Nine years later, he has lived up to that self-billing, taking an astounding 7-114 on his Test debut as Pakistan dismissed England for 281 in their first innings in Multan on Friday. This achievement was part of Pakistan’s victory over England.

On a turning pitch, Ahmed worked his own kind of magic, earning him the nick moniker “Harry Potter” from his friends due to the fact that he wears glasses that resemble those worn by the famous young wizard.

Ahmed, who was brought on to bowl the ninth over of the contest, got his maiden Test wicket with just his fifth ball, bamboozling Zak Crawley (19) to give Pakistan a breakthrough. Ahmed was brought on to bowl the ninth over of the match.

Because of “his passion for the game, the hard work he puts into bowling, and the thirst for taking wickets,” his brother Amjad told AFP by phone from Karachi that it was only a matter of time before he made his mark at the international level. “It was just a matter of time before he made his mark at the international level,” Amjad said.

The 2019-20 domestic season was Ahmed’s breakout year, as he amassed 57 wickets in the Grade-II tournament, including eight five-wicket hauls. This propelled him into the spotlight.

This year, he was called up to Pakistan’s national team after taking 43 wickets in the country’s most prestigious first-class event.

After taking the opening wicket of the match on Friday, Ahmed went on to dismiss Ben Duckett and Joe Root, much to the pleasure of Babar Azam, who was the captain of the Pakistani team and had desired a spinners’ track after losing the first Test on a surface that lacked any life in Rawalpindi.

Then, he got Ollie Pope and Harry Brook to follow his looping deliveries for a five-wicket haul, making him only the second rookie in the history of cricket to do it before lunch on the first day of a test match.

At the conclusion of the day, he reflected on it by saying, “I can’t convey my sentiments in words.”

“I am not a magician, despite the fact that people call me Harry Potter. I had finished what I was supposed to accomplish, which was to take wickets.”

In his first match for Pakistan, Ahmed became the 13th bowler in the country’s history to collect at least five wickets.

He is the youngest of five brothers and three sisters, and he hails from a background that was not particularly privileged.

His father was a small-time transport operator in Karachi, and he wanted Ahmed to study religion. However, Ahmed would sneak out of the house to play tape-ball cricket with the neighbourhood kids instead.

When Masroor Ahmed, a successful coach with an eye for youthful potential, saw him there, he immediately took him under his wing and helped him develop his skills.

“He recited the entire Koran by heart in order to make his father happy, but he also managed to persuade him that he had a bright future in cricket,” said Masroor.