Imtiaz Ahmed: Pakistan’s first regular Test wicketkeeper

In the first ten years of Pakistan’s Test cricket, one name was seen behind the stumps: Imtiaz Ahmed. He was Pakistan’s first regular wicketkeeper and also an aggressive batsman, whose hook shot spectators remembered for years². From Pakistan’s first Test match until 1962, he played 41 Tests, scored 2,079 runs and made 93 dismissals behind the stumps. His 209 against New Zealand, played while batting at number eight, is the highest score of his career¹.

Early life and start in cricket

Imtiaz Ahmed was born in Lahore on 5 January 1928. He was a right-handed batsman and could bowl off-breaks when needed, but wicketkeeping was his main identity. His brother, Iftikhar Ahmed, was also a cricketer. His first-class career began in the 1944-45 season and lasted until 1972-73. During this time he represented several teams, including Northern India, Punjab and Services².

According to ESPNcricinfo, Imtiaz was part of a determined group of players, most of them graduates of Lahore’s colleges, who gave Pakistan a successful start in Test cricket in the 1950s².

His Test career began with Pakistan’s first Test match, played against India in Delhi on 16 October 1952. He did not score in the first innings but made 41 in the second. On the same tour, at Eden Gardens in Kolkata on 12 December 1952, he scored 57, his first Test half-century¹.

Wicketkeeper and master of the hook shot

According to ESPNcricinfo, Imtiaz was a superb player of the hook shot. The noted batsman Majid Khan said he was inspired by watching Imtiaz face the West Indian fast bowler Wes Hall in Lahore in 1958-59. Because of his wicketkeeping duties he often had to bat low in the order, although he had the temperament of an aggressive opener².

On the 1954 tour of England he produced an exceptional performance. According to ESPNcricinfo, he came closer than any other player of a touring side to completing the wicketkeeper’s “double” of 1,000 runs and 100 dismissals in a first-class season, falling just 14 dismissals short².

In his Test career he took 77 catches and made 16 stumpings. In the home series against India in 1955, he scored 54, 55 and 69 in Dhaka, Lahore and Peshawar¹.

The 209 in Lahore and other memorable innings

In the Test against New Zealand in Lahore on 26 October 1955, Imtiaz came in at number eight. He batted for 380 minutes and scored 209 with 28 fours, the highest score of his Test career¹. A double century from so low in the order was clear proof of his batting ability.

On the 1958 tour of the West Indies he played as an opener. He scored 91 in Bridgetown, and on 26 February 1958 he scored 122 with 14 fours in Kingston. In the five Tests of that tour his batting average was 38.22. On 13 January 1961 he scored 135 against India in Chennai (Madras), his third and last Test century¹.

Between 1959 and 1962 he also captained Pakistan in four Tests. In February 1962, as captain, he scored 86 against England in Karachi¹.

His last Test began against England at The Oval on 16 August 1962. In that match he scored 49 in the first innings and 98 in the second, falling just 2 runs short of a century in his final Test innings¹.

Statistics

Source: ESPNcricinfo Statsguru¹. Figures are for his international career.

Influence and legacy

In the first ten years of Pakistan’s Test cricket, Imtiaz Ahmed carried out the wicketkeeping duties well and also supported the team with the bat. One of his three centuries was a double century, and his batting average away from home was 31.25¹.

His most lasting influence may be what he left on the next generation. A batsman like Majid Khan saying that he was encouraged by watching Imtiaz stand firm and hook fast bowling shows that Imtiaz gave young players not only runs but also a style².

Imtiaz Ahmed died in Lahore on 31 December 2016². He was among the players of Pakistan’s first Test match, and he laid the first brick of the tradition of Pakistani wicketkeeping.