Ireland Cricketer Hume left history empty

It was a strange day for Graham Hume. First of all, they were not supposed to play this match, if Barry McCarthy had not been injured at that moment, Hume would have remained on the bench. It was a conspiracy of nature that he was going to get injured and Hume was going to get one of the biggest wickets in world cricket.

Cricket analyst:Ali

The sting with which the Irish batting attacked the Pakistani bowling was enough to make it clear that this golden opportunity to make history was not to be missed. Despite losing both experienced batsmen like Belburnie and Stirling early on, the Irish innings continued to thrive under the leadership of Lorcan Tucker.

The plight of Pakistan's pacers in defending small boundaries once again got on Babar Azam's nerves and he failed to make full use of the spinners who are effective on this pitch.

What happened to Shadab Khan in the first match, here was the fate of Mohammad Amir, Naseem Shah and Shaheen Afridi. Unfamiliar with the conditions, half the match of the Pakistani pacers was spent in finding the right length.

The target that Pakistan batting faced after this invasion, if not impossible, was certainly worrying as the room for error here was only regrettable. And on the other hand, the spirited Irish bowling was looking to make history.

And then came the ball that Hume probably had to play this match to throw.

What sets the best batsmen in world cricket, Virat Kohli, Joe Root, Steve Smith and Kane Williamson apart from their fellow batsmen, is the extra effort the bowlers put in to get them out to tempt them into error. Something out of the ordinary has to be done.

That ball from Hume was also something out of the ordinary. It was a stray ball outside the off-stump that rose to a stretched length and Babar Azam was in the right position to play it but then suddenly there was some late movement and Babar Azam missed the mark.

Chasing a big target, after losing an opener like Saeem Ayub in the first over, Pakistan also lost their star batsman in the second over. After that ball from Hume, history might have really moved in the direction of Irish cricket as Pakistan were indeed on the back foot at that moment.

But the day was not over for Hume.

After this wicket, the ball seemed to follow Hume. After the initial shock, Mohammad Rizwan and Fakhar Zaman were struggling to take control of the Pakistani innings when suddenly the piece of the ball eluded Mohammad Rizwan and history hovered over Hume's head. But Hume's words were wrong and Muhammad Rizwan got a new life.

One over later, Fakhar Zaman's call was also betrayed and a simple catch waved towards Hume again and this time he was in a better position than before but the ball slipped through his fingers and fell to the ground.

Had Hume taken both these catches, the match might have been in Ireland's name and he would have become a legend of Irish cricket like Kevin O'Brien, becoming the hero of the first series victory in Irish cricket history against Pakistan.

But Hume left history empty.

The partnership of Mohammad Rizwan and Fakhar Zaman saved Pakistan from the defeat that was looming over this innings after two wickets fell at the start. This partnership not only saved their team from crisis, but both the batsmen also tried to answer the questions about their place in the team.