I was scared Misbah might topple me: Sohail Khan on de Villiers' wicket

Right-arm quickie says he went off radar to recover from back injury

Pakistan right-arm fast-bowler Sohail Khan on Thursday recalled the memory of bouncing South African captain AB de Villiers out to help his team beat the Proteas at Auckland in the do-or-die group B match of the 2015 World Cup.

Pakistan were beaten by India and West Indies in their first two matches of the tournament. A loss against South Africa would have pushed them out of the World Cup in the group stages.

Pakistan set a target of 232 runs for South Africa to chase and later terrific bowling by the men in green brought the match to a knife’s edge. De Villiers was holding the fort for his team and it was imperative for Pakistan to get him out.



"De Villiers was toying with our attack. I was asked to bowl by captain Misbah [ul Haq] when South Africa needed 32 runs to win with two wickets left. De Villiers was hitting our good length balls for sixes,” said Sohail, while talking to a state-run sports channel.

“I went up to Misbah and said ‘let me bowl him a bouncer I am confident I will get him’. Misbah simply said ‘do whatever you want, but if we won’t get him out then we are going back home’.

“By the grace of God, I bowled him a bouncer [in the 33^rd over of the match] that he edged to wicketkeeper Sarfraz [Ahmed].”

“Misbah was so overjoyed that he maniacally ran towards me to celebrate the wicket; I was scared that he might topple me.”

Sohail, meanwhile, is back on the recovery trail after suffering a stress fracture of his back at the end of the 2015 World Cup.

Sohail, who took five wickets against India in the World Cup opening game for Pakistan, revealed that he first felt a twinge in his back while bowling to David Warner during the quarter-final against Australia.

The pain increased during the training camp for Bangladesh series after the World Cup. Scans revealed that he was suffering from a stress fracture in L5 region of his lower back.



"I was advised a break; I rested for a few days at the National Cricket Academy before returning home. In Karachi, I resumed training but felt pain again and another scan revealed that the injury had worsened and I was advised rest for six additional weeks."

A few months ago national selection committee claimed that they didn't know the whereabouts of the fast-bowler; Sohail claims he deliberately went off radar to concentrate on his recovery.

"I stayed at home since I was advised bed rest. For the entire month of Ramazan, I kept my movement to a minimum in a bid to ensure my recovery."

Sohail, who is now representing the SSGC in domestic cricket, bowled a match-winning spell against Hyderabad taking seven wickets in the first innings of the latest round of Quaid-e-Azam trophy first-class cricket tournament.

"I am hopeful that I will comeback at my absolute best soon. I am raring to go and feel I fully fit for international cricket".