Today it would be difficult to escape the coach’s notice if you bowled off the wrong foot. "Those days there was no concept of coaching. We used to just go play, try to win, and nobody ever told me that there was something wrong with my action. Nobody told me it was strange till then."

The action came naturally to Rashid, who is now the China coach, and he never felt uncomfortable bowling off the wrong foot. The advantage he got from bowling like that was something similar to what Wasim Akram gained from his action. Rashid wasn't quick in the air, but off the pitch he would come quicker than the others. It is a shame he hasn’t met Mike Procter or Max Walker; he would have experiences to share that only others wrong-footers might understand.

Rashid’s most memorable wicket is of course Richards's. "Sometimes with this action the arm goes quickly, but the ball comes slow. I had that advantage. I got Viv's wicket in that fashion in the first ODI. I was bowling outswingers, he committed to the shot, but the ball came slow, and he was caught at cover.

"Salim Parvez was always scared of facing me. He was tall, and struggled to get his bat down in time, because of the pace off the pitch. I always used to get him leg-before."

And this last bit is for scientists and evolutionists to wonder at: "My 18-year-old son, who has never seen me bowl or my tapes, bowls ditto like me," says Rashid.