'People used to call Inzamam 'parchi' before the 1992 WC' - Rashid Latif

Former Pakistan cricketer Rashid Latif has revealed that before the 1992 Cricket World Cup semi-final, a lot of people used to call the Pakistan batting legend Inzamam-ul-Haq as ‘parchi.’ Inzamam scored a brilliant 60 from 37 balls in the semi-final of the 1992 World Cup, paving way for an impressive win.

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While talking on a Youtube video, Latif revealed that Inzamam was not seen as a good player. He said that he and Mushtaq Ahmed used to play with Inzamam-ul-Haq for the United Bank Limited (UBL) and thus were aware of his abilities. He noted that the semi-final changed the cricketer’s life forever.

"Inzamam and Mushtaq Ahmed used to play with me in United Bank Limited . Inzamam first had to prove himself in street cricket," Latif said. "No one was ready to accept that Inzamam was a good player. People used to call him a parchi but we had seen him play in UBL. The semi-final in 1992 changed his career overnight and he took Pakistan into the finals by beating New Zealand," Latif recounted.

Earlier, Inzamam also revealed that he asked Mushtaq Ahmed to talk to the Pakistan captain Imran Khan about leaving him out of the playing XI of the 1992 semi final as he was not feeling well. Khan, desperately wanted Inzamam to play and told him that he has to be on the field no matter what.

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"Before the World Cup semi-final against New Zealand, I was feeling unwell. I told Mushtaq Ahmed to tell Imran Khan I was unwell and won’t be able to play. Mushtaq came back, he laughed and Imran Khan said no matter what, you will play," Inzamam said.

When Inzamam came in to bat in Auckland that day, Pakistan was in a tricky situation. He scored 60 runs off 37 balls to take Pakistan into the World Cup final. Inzamam-ul-Haq became a star player in just one match.

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