Batting in the top three and bowling at first or second change, Mahmood has proved a match-winner on two occasions, both against Otago. He also came close to doing the same against today's opponents Canterbury last Tuesday. He hit 100 off 61 balls but was thwarted by Nicol's 101.
Mahmood had humble beginnings as a cricketer, taping up makeshift balls for use on a cement pitch near his Rawalpindi home as a boy. He made his first-class debut in 1993-94 and puts his longevity down to Pakistan's tough preparatory environment: "On those flat pitches, you need a skill to survive. Look at the fast bowler reverse-swing production line of Imran Khan, Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis and Shoaib Akhtar or the wristy leg spin of Abdul Qadir."
What does Mahmood rate as his survival skill?
"I think it's adaptability, especially if you're talking T20 where you have to make a plan on the spot; you don't have much time to think. People say I prefer to give myself room to play shots through the offside but that's not the case. If they load the offside with extra and deep extra cover, I can work the ball on the onside, too. That's an important part of a cricketer's skills. I've now played more than 100 T20 games [105 in total] so I'm confident and experienced."
Some of that experience was gleaned playing with greats of the modern game like Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis and Inzamam-ul-Haq.
"Kids wanted to be like them. In fact, the team that lost the 1999 World Cup final [by eight wickets to Australia at Lord's] was one of the best I played in. We played well in that tournament up until the final."
The team Mahmood refers to also included the likes of the original doosra master Saqlain Mushtaq, all-rounder Shahid Afridi and opener Saeed Anwar.
Mahmood has less fond memories of his last match for Pakistan - the shock loss to Ireland at the 2007 World Cup - which was followed by the death of the team's coach Bob Woolmer that night in the Jamaican capital Kingston.
"Before the World Cup, he worked so hard with us but we didn't perform well and got bowled out for 132 on a dodgy pitch which meant we were out of the tournament. It was major at the time. The world of cricket will miss Bob, he was a real gentleman; a guy with different ideas who could even get his message across to seasoned players."
After moving on from internationals, Mahmood settled in England, where he has been based for five years in the Surrey town of Kingston-upon-Thames near Wimbledon Common and Hampton Court.
He has largely given up packing a suitcase, preferring to buy a house and watch five-year-old daughter Inaaya grow up. He's hoping to be home for her birthday on Wednesday.
Mahmood says the current state of Pakistan cricket still has him upbeat, despite the no-ball spot-fixing scandal. It is a position underlined by Pakistan's 10-wicket win over England in the first test last week in Dubai.
"The fact we still can't get home advantage is dreadful," Mahmood says. "Pakistan has brilliant stadiums, fans love their cricket and want their team back. It's had a terrible impact on so many passionate people. Fortunately we're still producing talent from guys who develop their games on the street or at club level."
