Mohammad Abbas surpasses Imran Khan in unique bowling feat

TAROUBA: Pakistan's experienced pacer Mohammad Abbas on Monday surpassed the country's legendary all-rounder Imran Khan following his twin strike against West Indies on the ongoing third day of their first Test here at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy.

Abbas, who picked up three wickets for 63 runs in the first innings, made a flamboyant start to the second as he sent back Brandon King (five) and Kavem Hodge (zero) in his third over.

The twin strike brought Abbas's bowling average in the format down to 22.78, surpassing the previous best of 22.81, maintained by Pakistan's World Cup-winning captain Khan during his glittering career, which saw him take 362 wickets in 88 Tests.

Abbas, who made his Test debut against West Indies in 2017, however, has now taken 115 wickets in his 30th appearance in the format.

Best averages for Pakistan in Tests (minimum 100 wickets)

Mohammad Abbas — 115 wickets in 30 Tests at 22.78*
Imran Khan — 362 wickets in 88 Tests at 22.81
Waqar Younis — 373 wickets in 87 Tests at 23.56

Notably, Abbas is also only the sixth Pakistani pacer to have taken 100 Test wickets away from home, accompanying the likes of Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis, Imran Khan, Mohammad Amir and Umar Gul on the elusive list, while his bowling average has been the best amongst the six bowlers.

Meanwhile, following Abbas's twin strike, fellow pacers Mohammad Ali and Khurram Shahzad and all-rounder Aamir Jamal made one scalp apiece to help Pakistan put West Indies under pressure in the second innings as the home side had slipped to 80/5, leading by 109 runs.