Mohammad Nazir

Offspinner Mohammad Nazir took his best figures - 7 for 99 - on debut against New Zealand at Karachi in 1969-70 but he only took three other wickets in the three-Test series and was soon discarded. He toured England in 1971 and 1974 and played one more Test against England in 1972-73 but was wicketless. He continued to perform well in domestic cricket and was recalled in 1979-80 when he took 16 wickets in four Tests against West Indies, including 8 for 120 at Faisalabad. But he was again dropped and at 34 his international career seemed over. In 1981-82 he took 86 wickets at 14.67 and 70 at 20.72 the following year, and in 1983-84 he was again brought back for the series against India. He failed to take a wicket in the first two Tests but grabbed 7 for 122 in the last match and that won him a place on the tour of Australia. He played his final three Tests out there but struggled to make any impression. As if to underline that he kept getting better with age, his best season was in 1985-86 when his 88 wickets cost just 14.42 each. After finally retiring, he became an international umpire.
Martin Williamson