Pakistan leggie Yasir Shah almost single handedly dismissed New Zealand for 90 in their first innings on the third day of the second Test at Dubai, taking 8-41 and having a hand in a run-out.
Shah’s brilliant spell of bowling was yet another superb performance by the leggie and it ensured Pakistan were able to enforce the follow-on as they push for a vital win that would enable them to level the series at 1-1.
Shah dismissed five New Zealanders for ducks on his way to becoming the first Pakistan cricketer to take 10 Test wickets in a day.
Yasir Shah’s first innings haul – 8-41
JA Raval | b Yasir Shah | 31 | |
TWM Latham | c Imam-ul-Haq | b Yasir Shah | 22 |
LRPL Taylor | b Yasir Shah | 0 | |
HM Nicholl | b Yasir Shah | 0 | |
IS Sodhi | c Sarfraz Ahmed | b Yasir Shah | 0 |
N Wagner | lbw b Yasir Shah | 0 | |
AY Patel | lbw b Yasir Shah | 4 | |
TA Boult | st Sarfraz Ahmed | b Yasir Shah | 0 |
Yasir Shah’s second innings haul – 2-65 (innings in progress)
JA Raval | st Sarfraz Ahmed | b Yasir Shah | 2 |
KS Williamson | c Sarfraz Ahmed | b Yasir Shah | 30 |
Yasir Shah's magical spell of 8 for 41 which skittled the New Zealand team for 90 in the first innings of the second Test.
(Video Courtesy: Cricingif)#YasirShah #PAKvsNZ #SeharTV pic.twitter.com/uoorlxv9DC— Sehar TV (@SeharTV_) November 26, 2018
Shah’s been on an incredible run of form in his last nine Test matches, picking up eight or more wickets in a Test on eight occasions, in the process average 7.44 wickets per Tests, which is an incredible rate of consistency for a bowler who – surprisingly – is only ranked in 19th place on the ICC’s Test bowler rankings.
Yasir Shah’s great run of 8-fors
Runs | Wkts | Match | Opposition | Start date |
2-91 | 6-63 | 8 | West Indies | 21 Apr 2017 |
2-83 | 7-94 | 9 | West Indies | 30 Apr 2017 |
3-126 | 5-92 | 8 | West Indies | 10 May 2017 |
3-120 | 5-51 | 8 | Sri Lanka | 28 Sep 2017 |
6-184 | 2-47 | 8 | Sri Lanka | 6 Oct 2017 |
0-80 | 4-114 | 4 | Australia | 7 Oct 2018 |
1-59 | 3-45 | 4 | Australia | 16 Oct 2018 |
3-54 | 5-110 | 8 | New Zealand | 16 Nov 2018 |
8-41 | 2-65 | 10 | New Zealand | 24 Nov 2018 |
Average | 7.44 |
His 8-41 was also the third-best Test bowling figures in an innings by a Pakistan bowler, slipping ahead of Pakistan cricket legend (and current Prime Minister of Pakistan) Imran Khan.
Pakistan’s best Test bowling figures in an innings
Player | Overs | Mdns | Runs | Wkts | Econ | Opponent | Match Date |
Abdul Qadir | 37 | 13 | 56 | 9 | 1.51 | England | 25 Nov 1987 |
Sarfraz Nawaz | 35.4×8 | 7 | 86 | 9 | 1.81 | Australia | 10 Mar 1979 |
Yasir Shah | 12.3 | 1 | 41 | 8 | 3.28 | New Zealand | 24 Nov 2018 |
Imran Khan | 29.3 | 8 | 58 | 8 | 1.96 | Sri Lanka | 22 Mar 1982 |
Imran Khan | 20.1 | 4 | 60 | 8 | 2.97 | India | 23 Dec 1982 |
Photo: Aamir Qureshi/AFP/Getty Images