Hassan Ali: From ridicule to world's top bowler

KARACHI: Few months before his international debut, Pakistan’s sensational fast bowler Hasan Ali was ridiculed in a press conference during the first edition of Pakistan Super League (PSL).

A journalist had passed unnecessary remarks after he was brought to the press conference by Peshawar Zalmi as he was not famous enough to become a top news story.

It has been around 18 months since the incident, Ali has become the top bowler in ICC’s ODI bowler ranking and the country’s leading bowler on numerous occasions.

Since his debut against Ireland at Malahide, Dublin, on August 2016, Ali has taken 56 wickets in 26 ODIs, most by any bowler since the right-handed bowler launched his ODI career. Second to him is England’s Adil Rashid, who’s 12 wickets behind Hasan.

Ali took 14 wickets in the recently concluded five-match ODI series against Sri Lanka and finished the series as Pakistan’s leading wicket-taker. 

The feat of taking 14 wickets in a five-match bilateral series is the highest by any Pakistani bowler. 

Previously, the record of most wickets for Pakistan in a five-match series was jointly held by Shahid Afridi and Junaid Khan, both of them had 13 wickets in different a five-match ODI series.

During the series, Ali also completed his 50 ODI wickets, by reaching this feat in his 24th match, he became the quickest from Pakistan to reach this milestone, surpassing Waqar Younis.

He currently has 56 wickets in 26 ODIs to his credit, most by any fast bowler after first the 26 matches of his career, and the second bowler ever after Sri Lanka’s Ajantha Mendis, who had 62 wickets after 26 ODIs. New Zealand’s Mitchell McClenaghan got 54 wickets after 26 matches.

The series against Sri Lanka wasn’t the only one where Hasan Ali finished as the leading wicket-taker, he was also the country’s top wicket-taker with 13 wickets falling to him in Pakistan’s victorious Champions’ Trophy campaign.

Ali was also the country’s leading bowler in the series against Australia, where he took 12 wickets and in England last year, where he took 8 wickets.

Ali was born in Gujranwala, a city largely famous for pehalwans (wrestlers) and has not produced many cricketers.

Even Hasan had once told this correspondent during the Champions’ Trophy that he used to play kabbadi before turning into cricket.

Keeping in view his performance during the last 14 months (since his debut), it won’t be wrong to say that he’s Pakistan’s the most promising bowling discovery.