Desdemona: No, unfasten my dress here. This Lodovico is a fine person.
Emilia: A very handsome man.
Desdemona: He speaks very nicely.
Emilia: I know. A lady in Venice would have walked bare-foot to Palestine to have a kiss on his lower lip.
(The Tragedy of Othello by William Shakespeare - Act IV, Scene III, Lines 35-39)
One can fathom how charismatic Lodovico was, that made Emilia, Iago’s wife, to make such a remark about him in William Shakespeare’s masterpiece Tragedy, Othello. Yesterday, November 20, 2006, at 11:01 AM local time, Pakistan's Mohammad Yousuf had much larger audience than Lodovico, who could walk bare-foot to National Stadium to greet their hero for his epic achievement. None else since WG Grace, a bearded wonder has dominated the cricket field with such sleekness, until Yousuf unleashed his batting powers from heaven since the dawn of the year. In twelve months, the cricketing world has tilted on its axis from being Yousuf Youhana to Mohammad Yousuf. For 322 days, between Januray 13 and November 30, Yousuf batted, and batted and batted to topple one of the longest standing records in cricket history.
(The Tragedy of Othello by William Shakespeare - Act IV, Scene III, Lines 35-39)
One can fathom how charismatic Lodovico was, that made Emilia, Iago’s wife, to make such a remark about him in William Shakespeare’s masterpiece Tragedy, Othello. Yesterday, November 20, 2006, at 11:01 AM local time, Pakistan's Mohammad Yousuf had much larger audience than Lodovico, who could walk bare-foot to National Stadium to greet their hero for his epic achievement. None else since WG Grace, a bearded wonder has dominated the cricket field with such sleekness, until Yousuf unleashed his batting powers from heaven since the dawn of the year. In twelve months, the cricketing world has tilted on its axis from being Yousuf Youhana to Mohammad Yousuf. For 322 days, between Januray 13 and November 30, Yousuf batted, and batted and batted to topple one of the longest standing records in cricket history.
Ever since his conversion from Christianity to Islam in 2005, Yousuf’s average grew more rapidly than his beard. His conversation rate (fifties to centuries) is Bradmanesque. Almost every other start by Yousuf is now turned into a century. His last 13 fifty plus scores have produced 10 centuries. In his first 20 Tests he scored a single century; in his next 53 Tests he has made 22.
One hopes he would continue his golden run in the upcoming South African tour and performance on those pitches would surely enhance his stature as a batsman. Its time for our media and public to hail his achievements just as Indian media does for their players when they perform. We salute Mohammad Yousuf for coming of age!
