Fawad Ahmed, 36, made the last of his five international appearances for Australia in September 2013, just a month after he became eligible to be picked for the national side under ICC regulations after he earned permanent residency in the country having fled from Pakistan in 2010. As a legspinner in Australia, comparisons to the legendary Shane Warne are always around the corner and when Damien Martyn made his proclamation after facing Fawad in the nets, the pressure quotient on the spinner was instantly amped up. Several others before him had fallen to that old Australian readiness test and Ahmed quietly faded away from national reckoning.
Five years on, with the Australian national team looking to shed their cultural indifference to the T20Is, Fawad is in line for a shock return. Not many spinners have managed to outshine Sunil Narine while bowling alongside the Windies’ mystery spinner but Fawad did just that as he claimed a chart-topping 22 wickets at an economy of 6.18 for champions Trinbago Knight Riders in the just-concluded season of the Caribbean Premier League.
Justin Langer, Australia’s head coach, got wind of Fawad’s impressive show and sought a debrief of his capabilities from former national teammate and Trinbago head coach Simon Katich. The latter also had no doubts that Fawad was ready for the top-level.
