"Superman" was the word doing the rounds for Shadab Khan in Lahore on Sunday night and for those who watched the last hour at the Gaddafi Stadium would argue with it.
Shadab finished unbeaten on 113 to drag Pakistan to a one-wicket win over England from a position that had emptied a good portion of the ground.
Pakistan were 154 for 9 chasing 241 when Will Jacks bowled Razaullah. Haris Rauf walked out with 87 still needed and the match, to everyone watching, already decided.
What followed was 89 runs in 17 overs, with Shadab farming the strike and picking off a boundary almost every over while Rauf survived 18 deliveries for 3. The stand is now the highest for the tenth wicket in a successful ODI chase, 25 clear of the 64 Deryck Murray and Andy Roberts put on for the West Indies against Pakistan back in 1975.
England thought they had ended the innings twice. Gus Atkinson trapped Shadab lbw with a full toss on 91, only for UltraEdge to find an inside edge the batter himself had not detected, and Rauf slipped, turning for a second with the field closing in around him.
Shadab reached his hundred off 95 balls, squeezing Atkinson between short third and backward point. It was his first century in any format for Pakistan, and he became only the third man to score an ODI hundred batting at No. 8 or lower.
Cricbuzz even posted a winning graph that showed just how wildly the tide of the match changed. "This pretty much sums up that crazy finish in Lahore," they wrote .
This pretty much sums up that crazy finish in Lahore!! #ShadabKhan #HarisRauf pic.twitter.com/HWaNdI5j7s
And the reactions that came from fans and critics alike echoed what the graph showed.
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The comparisons began before the players had left the field, and they reached a long way back. One supporter ranked the innings among the matches that established Lahore's reputation for unexpected finishes.
"This from Shadab is one of the greatest ODI tons in the history of Pakistan cricket. Lahore has seen the heist in '87 WC against WI, a heartbreak of falling 9 runs short against RSA in '97, and a tied ODI against WI in '91. Those are from another generation. This will be remembered," they wrote .
This from Shadab is one of the greatest ODI tons in the history of Pakistan cricket. Lahore has seen the heist in '87 WC against WI, a heartbreak of falling 9 runs short against RSA in '97, a tied ODI against WI in '91. Those are from another generation. This will be remembered.
PTV broadcaster Roha Nadeem was less interested in history than in how the innings had been put together, with Shadab calculating every single one and refusing those that would have exposed his partner.
"SUPERMAN Shadab Khan. A masterclass in grit and calculation under pressure. Kamaal stuff. #pakveng," she posted .
SUPERMAN Shadab Khan. A masterclass in grit and calculation under pressure. Kamaal stuff. #pakveng
Bharath Ramaraj, a correspondent for RevSportz, reached for the single most famous finish in Pakistan's history and made a point to the supporters who had already walked out.
"This feels like Pakistan's Javed Miandad moment of the century! Of course, that moment in Sharjah was something else for them, as it had come against Ind. The stadium was half empty when the ninth wicket went down. Those fans who had left the stadium would have been heartbroken," he said .
Not all of the reaction was about the cricket. Shadab has spent years being dismissed online as a selection owed to connections rather than performance. Gowhar Geelani used the occasion to put those to bed.
"No one, absolutely no one, should call him names. No one should dismiss him as 'parchi' or 'damad'. He is your match winner. He is @76Shadabkhan!" he wrote , before adding a Pakistani precedent of his own in Abdul Razzaq's match-winning hundred against South Africa in the UAE while chasing 280 plus.
Multan Sultans chief executive Gohar Shah had the same audience in mind and did not bother dressing it up. "Well done @76Shadabkhan, incredible knock when it felt like all was lost. @HarisRauf14 with the supporting act. Quote tweet for the keyboard warriors," he said .
Well done @76Shadabkhan , incredible knock when it felt like all was lost. @HarisRauf14 with the supporting act. Quote tweet for the keyboard warriors.
It is honestly difficult to argue against Shadab's place in the national team now, after this landmark innings. But critics will always find a reason to complain.
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The abuse Shadab has taken has always said more about Pakistani cricket discourse than about the player. He has been a wicket-taking legspinner, a fielder of genuine quality and a captain across formats, and none of that stopped the accusations that he was in the side for reasons other than cricket.
Sunday answered those as emphatically as a single innings can. A hundred from No. 8 in a chase, with the last man at the other end and the required rate climbing, is not a performance anyone can explain away as a favour. The honest caveat is that his batting record does not change overnight.
This was his first century for Pakistan, and one inning does not make a middle-order batter of a man who has spent his career at eight. What it should change is the tone.
Gohar Shah's line about the keyboard warriors will age better than most of what was written about Shadab over the last two years, and Pakistan would be better served judging him on the wickets and the fielding than on who they think got him picked.
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Deepanjan Mitra is a content writer and editor based in India, with extensive experience working across a variety of sports. He combines a passion for storytelling with an ability to deliver insightful news, analysis, and feature stories and has previously worked for the likes of Sports Illustrated and Essentially Sports.
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