Pakistan legend Hanif Mohammad put on life support

Legendary Pakistan batsman Hanif Mohammed who has been battling lung cancer for 3 years was shifted to a ventilator after his condition deteriorated during his treatment in a private hospital. Hanif’s son Shoaib Mohammed confirmed the news and admitted that his father was suffering from breathing trouble and was admitted to the Aga Khan Hospital in Karachi last week.

Shoaib said that the surgery conducted in London has brought the disease under control to a certain extent but pointed out that cancer takes a toll on a patient’s body with each passing day. He also confirmed that the doctors dismissed any chances of chemotherapy after seeing his father’s latest biopsy report.

Shoaib Mohammed who is a Pakistani International Airlines employee said that the latest treatments were a bit expensive compared to the previous one and they would seek help from the government and sports authorities to provide the money needed for his father’s recovery.

Hanif Mohammed was regarded one of the best batsmen at his peak but unfortunately, he played in an era where Pakistan played very little Test cricket and playing only 55 Tests in a career spanning over 17 years goes on to prove this.

Making his debut at the age of 17, Hanif went on to become the youngest batsman in Test history to score a century. The “Little Master” from Pakistan played the longest innings in Test history when he scored 337 against West Indies at Bridgetown in 1957-58. His innings spanned for 952 minutes. A year later he scored 499 in a first-class match, the highest individual score by any batsman in first-class cricket before it was surpassed by Brian Lara in 1994.

Hanif Mohammed was a multi-talented guy and tried his hands at various things. Apart from captaining Pakistan, Hanif also kept wickets and bowled both right and left handed in Test cricket. The Pakistani great played his last Test for Pakistan against New Zealand in the year 1969, finishing his Test career with nearly 4000 runs and 12 centuries whilst averaging a little over 43.

He was included in the ICC’s Hall of Fame in January 2009 for his immense contribution to the sport.