Legendary Pakistani cricketer Hanif Mohammad dies

By Aamir Latif

KARACHI, Pakistan (AA) – Legendary Pakistani cricketer Hanif Mohammad has died aged 81 after a protracted illness, doctors and family said on Thursday.

Earlier in the day, reports had prematurely circled about his death after confusion over a six-minute period when his heartbeat was faint but after which he began breathing again, according to his son Shoaib Mohammad.

Better known by fans and fellow cricketers as the "little master", owing to his short height, Mohammad had suffered from lung cancer over the last two years and in recent weeks was admitted to hospital.

Born in 1934 in modern-day India, Mohammad was one of the pioneers of cricket in Pakistan, playing in the national squad (1952-1969). He scored 3,915 runs over his career and on 12 occasions scored 100 runs in a single game, known as a century.

Mohammad played in Pakistan's first-ever test-match in 1952, five years after independence and holds the 1957 record for the longest test innings - 15 hours.

“His death is end of the golden era of Pakistan cricket,” Abdul Qadir, a former captain of Pakistan cricket team, told local channel Geo TV. “He was not just a wonderful cricketer but a true gentleman as well. He was the one who put Pakistan cricket on the winning track."

President Mamnoon Hussein and Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif paid tribute to the iconic cricketer and have condoled his family and fans.