Razaullah

Razaullah's name has been etched in the record books even if he never plays international cricket again. On debut, plucked from virtual obscurity after Pakistan had sent nearly half their squad and all their coaching staff home from a tour of England two Tests into a series, the express pace bowler played the match of his dreams. Bowling Pakistan's quickest spell of the series, he got Joe Root out and took four wickets in his first innings.

However, that is not what Razaullah will be remembered for this game. Batting at number nine as Pakistan battled to avoid an innings defeat, he cut loose in savage fashion against an England pace battery that had terrorized Pakistan's senior batters all series. On the way, he scored the fastest half-century by a Pakistani debutant - coming in 43 balls. He smashed three sixes off Jofra Archer in 12 balls, another four off Gus Atkinson, and one against Josh Tongue, all in one innings; no Pakistan batters has ever hit eight sixes against pace in his entire career. All in all, he scored 81 in 63 balls - the most runs in an innings by a No. 9 on debut.

Beyond that, little is known about Razaullah, and plenty of that is apocryphal. He was reported not to have a passport when he received his Pakistan call-up, and that he had been impossible to reach, both tales eventually debunked by the player himself. He had loosely been on the selectors' radar as a future prospect because of his high pace - he routinely clocks over 90mph, and bowled one of the fastest spells on debut for a Test in England. There was an outside chance he would go to Japan for the Asian Games, but Pakistan's mid-series squad reshuffle changed his fortunes.

A slingy-arm 21-year old bowler with a side-on action, Razaullah puts his body through tremendous stress to generate the pace he does - something that might have been watched by the Pakistan medical department and bowling coaches. He was signed up by Rawalpindiz in the PSL and played a couple of games, but wasn't believed to be close to any major breakthrough until the Edgbaston Test sent his fortunes soaring. While he may take the plaudits for his power hitting, Pakistan do need a bowler capable of keeping his speeds up, a trait they will do well to nourish as Pakistan's reservoir of pace bowling talent dries up.