Shaul Karnain - Sri Lanka - Batsman

A sporadic bowling all-rounder who was suited for the 50-over format, Shaul Karnain shot to fame with a brilliant all-round performance on debut that fetched him the Man of the Match award as well. However, the instant fame that he gained then couldn’t be maintained and Karnain endured a rather brief career. He was a resourceful customer, more than useful with the ball and as a batsman, he had the ability to get stuck in, to support a specialist batsman when the need arose. In domestic cricket, he was a superstar and was good enough to walk into any team on the strength of his bowling alone. That said, he certainly didn’t do justice to his talent in international cricket. Despite enjoying satisfying outings in the 1985 World Series Cricket and World Championship Cricket tournaments, Karnain couldn’t maintain the tempo for long. His inconsistencies aside, Uvais was nevertheless a useful commodity for the Lankan ODI sides of the 1980s.

Written by Hariprasad Sadanandan