Pakistan Cricket Players Biography Wallpapers

Wednesday, 23 April 2014

Mohammad Yousuf

Mohammad Yousuf Biography
source link (google.com.pk)

Mohammad Yousuf, born on August 27, 1974, is a Pakistani middle-order batsman who went on to become one of the highest run-scorers produced by the country in both Tests and One-Day Internationals (ODIs). Yousuf could have achieved so much more and become one of the modern-day greats, had it not been for some unfortunate circumstances in the latter half of his career. Jaideep Vaidya reflects on the career of the stylish batsman.

With a flowing, bearded look that resembled WG Grace, an insatiable hunger for runs that rivalledDon Bradman, an elegant and effective high backlift that he made his own and the ability to inconspicuously accumulate tons and tons of runs;Mohammad Yousuf was easily one of the most delightful batsmen to watch in recent times.

Former coach Bob Woolmer likened him to a Ferrari when he is batting and a truck when he isn’t.
With a pragmatic manner of scoring runs, but still elegant enough to make you go wow at his strokes, Yousuf ploughed his way to 7,530 runs in Test matches — the third-highest run-tally among Pakistanis, behind Javed Miandad and Inzamam-ul-Haq) — including 25 hundreds and 46 fifties. In ODIs, he is Pakistan’s second-highest run-getter with 9,554, behind just Inzamam, including 15 centuries and 62 fifties. It’s a tally that is hard to match, and if circumstances in his career were better, he would easily have gone on to be Pakistan’s greatest batsman ever.

Early career

He was born Yousuf Youhana, a Christian, in Lahore in 1974; and like most Christian minorities in Pakistan, who had converted from Hindu untouchables in the 19th century, he was born into poverty. His father worked at the railway station and, thus, his family lived in the Railway Colony. Yousuf took to cricket from a young age, but unlike his peers he could not afford a bat; so he had to make do by swatting a taped tennis ball around, tossed by his brother, with stray wooden planks.

When he was 12, he was spotted by a local gymkhana who asked him to play for them. As he grew up, he joined the Forman Christian College and played for their cricket team as well, before giving up for almost a year in 1994, when he was 20. Although he was and probably realised that he was very good at cricket, he never gave it a serious thought. A steady income was always at the top of the priority list; never did the thought of playing for the country cross his mind. “I just wanted a job in an organisation with a First-Class cricket team, and to make a living,” were as far as his humble ambitions went, as quoted by Wisden. Yousuf had found work at a tailor’s shop when a local club hauled him up when they were short of players. Yousuf stepped in to make the numbers, and went ahead of score more than hundred of them. It led to a season in the Bradford League, which was a stepping stone into First Class cricket.

Until his conversion to Islam in 2005, Mohammad Yousuf (formely known as Yousuf Youhana) was one of a handful of Christians to play for Pakistan. After a difficult debut against South Africa in 1997-98, he quickly established himself as a stylish world-class batsman, and a pillar of Pakistan's middle order, alongside Inzamam-ul-Haq. He is no sluggard, but gathers his runs through orthodox, composed strokeplay, unlike some of his colleagues who seldom hint at permanence. He is particularly strong driving through the covers and flicking wristily off his legs and brings with him as decadent and delicious a backlift as any in the game. A tendency to overbalance when playing across his front leg can get him into trouble. He excels at both versions of the game, and in one-day cricket can score 20 or 30 runs before anyone notices. He is quick between the wickets although not necessarily the best judge of a single. There had been questions about his temperament as batsman when the pressure is on, but between 2004 and 2005, he began to silence critics. First came a spellbindingly languid century against the Australians in Melbourne, as captain to boot, where he ripped into Shane Warne like few Pakistani batsmen have before or since. A century in the cauldron of Kolkatta followed but he ended the year with possibly his most important knock: a double century against England at Lahore so easy on the eye, you almost didn't notice it. With Inzamam missing through injury for parts of the innings, Yousuf displayed an unusual responsibility, eschewing the waftiness that has previously blighted him. In 2006, Yousuf truly came of age in a record-breaking year. He began by plundering India and continued in England, not just scoring under pressure, but scoring big. A double ton at Lord's was followed by another big hundred at Headingly and the Oval. He rounded off a fantastic year with four hundreds in three Tests against the West Indies, a feat that took him past Viv Richards's long-standing record of most Test runs in a calendar year and also saw him establish the record for most Test hundreds (9) in a year. With Inzamam nearing a natural end, the credentials of Yousuf as Pakistan's premier batsman are impressive.

Mohammad Yousuf

Imran Farhat

Imran Farhat Biography
source link (google.com.pk)

Imran Farhat, Cricketers is famous for Cricket, Pakistani celebrity. Born on 20 May, 1982

A gifted young left-handed opener who threatened at one stage to solve Pakistan's perennial opening conundrum, Imran Farhat had a brief spell in the Pakistan side after success with the national under-19 and A sides. Farhat also evokes Saeed Anwar but only fleetingly; he bludgeons rather than times his runs. He was rather too cavalier in his early appearances in the Test arena, and was promptly discarded after the tour to New Zealand in 2000-01. However, he tightened his game and achieved much more success in the 2003-04 season. Tempering his impressive array of shots with better defensive technique, Farhat scored a deluge of runs in the home series against South Africa and New Zealand, being involved in a record four successive hundred partnerships with Yasir Hameed in the one-day internationals against New Zealand. He also notched up his first century in both Tests and ODIs during this season, and then went on to score a vital 101 in Pakistan's victory against India in the Lahore Test. But since the India series, he has fallen away. A mediocre series at home to Sri Lanka and away to Australia saw him falter, especially with the emergence of the other left-handed opener, Salman Butt. When Pakistan included only one specialist opener in the squad for the series against England in 2005 - Butt - seemingly it confirmed that Farhat, temporarily, was out of national reckoning. But as an opener in Pakistan, you are never out of national reckoning and sure enough Farhat was back for the final Test against India, where he scored a fifty. That performance saw him on the plane to Sri Lanka and an average series. But with openers becoming as rare as dinosuars in Pakistan, he was retained for the summer tour to England, where he again produced some mixed results. Despite failures in the first two Tests, a broken finger and a spate of dropped catches, he came back to score a cavalier 91 in the final, fateful Oval Test. Runs against West Indies at home were followed by a barren patch in South Africa. A first away hundred followed by a patient half-century in the Napier Test of 2009 has set him up for a long sojourn in the Test side. His ODI career has however hit roadblocks since he was dropped after an indifferent run of scores in 2006.
Imran Farhat hit a dozen boundaries and two sixes in his 59-ball 100

Opener Imran Farhat slammed a whirlwind unbeaten ton to help Lahore Eagles register a comfortable 58-run win over Hyderabad Hawks at Lahore City Cricket Association in their Faysal Bank T20 Cup opener on Saturday.

The dashing southpaw plundered 100 off 59 balls and shared 168-run opening stand with Taufeeq Umar (65 off 53) as Eagles posted a considerable total of 224-2.

In reply, Sharjeel Khan hit an unbeaten 103 off 65 balls with the help of seven sixes and half-dozen boundaries but failed to receive support from the rest of the cast.

Sharjeel and Azeem Ghumman got hosts off to a flamboyant start in chase and plundered 44 runs off first 27 deliveries before Ghumman, who hit three fours and a six in his 15-ball 28, bowled out edged to Imran Farhat off left-arm seamer Junaid Zia.

Seamer Asif Raza dragged Hawks further into trouble by removing wicketkeeper batsman Shahzad Haider in the subsequent over.

After the back-to-back dismissals, Sharjeel shouldered the obligation single-handedly and continued the anticipation towards target with attacking strokes. But was unable to find a able ally on the other end.

Aqeel Anjum departed for 13 and Rizwan Ahmed perished for single but unstoppable Sharjeel accelerated the flow of runs on board. However, despite of his strive, Hawks failed to cope with consistently rising asking-rate and desponded for 156-5.

Earlier, left-handed openers Imran Farhat and skipper Umar made the mockery of Hyderabad bowling attack with sparkling shots all over the park.

The majestic partnership between the pair ended with the dismissal of Umar, who hit nine boundaries before getting caught behind to gloveman Shahzad Haider off spinner Nasir Awais.

After Umar’s dismissal, Imran Farhat combined with Azhar Ali (28 off 13) for another ostentatious stand, which saw Eagles clobber 58 runs off just 28 deliveries.

Imran Farhat advanced to three figures with the help of 12 boundaries and two gigantic maximums.

imran farhat

Tuesday, 22 April 2014

Waqar Younus

Waqar Younus biography
source link (google.com.pk)

Waqar Younis Maitla is a former Pakistani right arm fast bowler in cricket and widely regarded as one of the best fast bowlers of all time.
He was best known in cricket for his ability to reverse swing a cricket ball at high speed when bowling at the cricket pitch. He took 373 Test wickets and 416 One Day International wickets during his career. He is considered to be the best exponent of the swing bowling delivery. Younis has the best strike rate for any bowler with over 200 Test wickets. He worked as a bowling coach with the national side from 2006 to 2007.
Younis was appointed as the coach of the Pakistan cricket team on 3 March 2010. His managerial contract with the Pakistan Cricket Board will take part in all forms of cricket, right up to December 2011, which will include all professional competitions, such as the 2011 Cricket World Cup.
Early and personal life
Younis was born in Vehari, Punjab in Pakistan in a Jatt family. He was educated in Sadiq Public School in Bahawalpur in Pakistan, the Pakistani College (Pakistan Islamia Higher Secondary School) in Sharjah and the Government College University in Vehari. He was raised in Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates, where his father was a contract worker. He returned to Pakistan during his adolescent years and there, he started playing cricket.
He is married to Dr. Faryal Waqar Younis with a son Azaan Waqar and a daughter Maira Waqar and now lives in Castle Hill in Australia. Younis has also worked as a television sports commentator for the Nine Network in Australia and for Ten Sports in the United Arab Emirates.
Waqar Younis Maitla is a former Pakistani right arm fast bowler born in Vehari Punjab. He is one of the top ten cricketers of all time and got worldwide fame. He is well known in cricket for his ability to “reverse swing a cricket ball” at high speed while bowling at cricket pitch. During his career he took “373 Test Wickets” and “416 One Day International Wickets”. Waqar Younis is considered as one of the best exponents of swing bowling delivery. He has a best strike rate for any bowler with more than “200 Test Wickets”.
Personal Information of Waqar Younis

Personal information
Full name Waqar Younis Maitla
Born 16 November 1971 (age 39)
Vehari, Punjab, Pakistan

Height 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)
Batting style Right hand bat
Bowling style Right arm fast
Role Bowler
Domestic Team Information
Domestic team information
Years Team
2003-2004 Allied Bank Limited
2003 Warwickshire
2001-2003 National Bank of Pakistan
2000-2001 Lahore Blues
1999-2000 REDCO Pakistan Limited
1998-1999 Rawalpindi
1998-1999 Karachi
1997-1998 Glamorgan
1990-1993 Surrey
1988-1989, 1996-1997 United Bank Limited
1987-1988, 1997-1998 Multan
International Information
International information
National side Pakistan

Waqar Younus

Wasim Akram

Wasim Akram Biography
source link (google.com.pk)

Full name Wasim Akram
Born June 3, 1966 Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan
Height 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Role Bowler
Batting style Left-handed
Bowling style Left-arm fast
International information
Test debut (cap 102) 25 January 1985: v New Zealand
Last Test 9 January 2002: v Bangladesh
ODI debut (cap 53) 23 November 1984: v New Zealand
Last ODI 4 March 2003: v Zimbabwe
Domestic team information
Years Team
2003 Hampshire
2000/01 Lahore Blues
1992/93 – 2000/01 Pakistan International Airlines
1988 – 1998 Lancashire
1997/98 Lahore City
1985/86 Lahore City Whites
1984/85 – 1985/86 Pakistan Automobiles Corporation

Wasim Akram (Urdu: وسیم اکرم)(born June 3, 1966 in Lahore, Punjab) is a former Pakistani cricketer. He was a left-arm fast bowler and left-handed batsman, who represented the Pakistani cricket team in Tests and One-Day Internationals. He is widely regarded as one of the finest fast bowlers ever and holds world records for the most wickets taken in both ODIs (502) and List A cricket (881). Domestic career
Wasim signed for Lancashire in 1988 and went on to become one of their most successful overseas players. From 1988 to 1998, he spearheaded their attack in their NatWest Trophy, Benson & Hedges Cup and Sunday League winning sides. He was a favourite of the local fans who used to sing a song called "Wasim for England" at Lancashire's matches.

International career
Wasim made his Test debut for Pakistani cricket team against New Zealand in early 1985 and in only his second Test he made his presence felt with a ten-wicket haul. Like a few other Pakistani cricketers of his time, he was identified at club level and bypassed first-class domestic competition, entering international cricket directly. A few weeks prior to his selection into the Pakistani team, he was an unknown club cricketer who had failed to even make it to his college team. He was spotted by Javed Miandad, and as a result of his insisting was it that Wasim was given an oppurtunity to play for Pakistan. Later that season he paired with Imran, who became his mentor, at the World Championship of Cricket in Australia.

Wasim's rise in international cricket was rapid during the initial years. When Pakistan toured the West Indies in 1988, he looked to be the quickest bowler between the two sides. However, a serious groin injury impeded his career in the late 1980s. Following two surgeries, he re-emerged in 1990 as a bowler who focused more on swing and control than speed.

One-Day success
Wasim was instrumental in Pakistan's famous World Cup victory in 1992 in Australia. In the final against England his late flurry of an innings, 33 off 19 balls, pushed Pakistan to a respectable 249 for 6. Wasim then took the all-important wicket of Ian Botham early on, and when brought back into the attack later on, with the ball reverse swinging, he produced a devastating spell which led to Allan Lamb and Chris Lewis being clean-bowled in successive deliveries. His excellent performances earned him the Man of the Match award for the final.

He also captained Pakistan with some success. The high points of his captaincy were the 1996-97 victory in the World Series in Australia, two Test match wins in India in 1998-99 and in 1999, when Pakistan reached the World Cup final for the second time. The low point was the 1996 World Cup in Pakistan and India, when he had to pull out of the crucial quarter final match against India. After Pakistan's defeat, there were angry protests outside his homes, and a government inquiry was launched into the failure.

In 1999, he led Pakistan to the brink of victory in the World Cup before they rolled over and gave the final to Australia. This was the start of the match-fixing controversies, as people believed Wasim had set up the match for Australia. He was pardoned by Justice Qayyum.

He was Pakistan's top bowler in the 2003 World Cup taking 19 wickets in 7 matches. However, Pakistan failed to reach the "Super Six" phase of the tournament, and Wasim was one of the eight players to be sacked by the Pakistan Cricket Board as a result.

Wasim was diagnosed with diabetes at the peak of his career, but despite the initial psychological blow, he managed to regain his form and went on to produce fine cricketing displays. Since then he has actively sought to be involved in various awareness-raising campaigns for diabetes.

Playing style
“ Over my 15 or 16 years of playing international cricket in Tests and one-day internationals, Wasim Akram is definitely the most outstanding bowler I've ever faced. ”
— Former West Indies batsman Brian Lara.

An immensely talented player first discovered by Javed Miandad, Wasim played for his college(Govt. Islamia College Civil Lines, Lahore) as an opening bowler and batsman. As a bowler, Wasim possessed genuine pace, accurate control of line and length and seam position, and could swing the ball both in and out. With a very deceptive ball-concealing action, he could bowl equally well from both sides of the wicket. His mastery of reverse swing with the old ball meant he was at his most dangerous towards the end of an innings, and earned him the nickname Sultan of Swing.

As well as often being able to find the edge of the bat, Wasim would also focus his attack on the stumps and had a particularly lethal yorker. Of his 414 Test wickets, 193 were taken caught, 119 were taken LBW and 102 were bowled. In partnership with Waqar Younis, he intimidated international batsmen in the 1990s. Together Wasim and Waqar, known as "the two Ws" of the Pakistani team, were one of the most successful bowling partnerships ever.

Wasim was also skilled with the bat and was regarded as a bowling all-rounder. He was especially effective against spinners. However, he liked to slog and was criticised for his lack of big scores and giving away his wicket too cheaply for a player of his talent. He did silence his critics in October 1996 when he scored 257, not out, of the team's total of 553 against Zimbabwe at Sheikhupura. He also made good scores in difficult times for the Pakistan team such as his 123 against Australia and his 45 not-out to take Pakistan to victory in a low-scoring match. Pakistan, needing six runs in two balls two win the Nehru Cup saw Wasim come out to bat. The first ball he faced was hit out of the ground and secured the cup. Ahmed Bilal was his coach who gave him tricks on reverse swing.

Records
In his Test career, Wasim took 414 wickets in 104 matches, a Pakistani record, at an average of 23.62, and scored 2,898 runs, at an average of 22.64.
In One-Day Internationals, Wasim took a world record 502 wickets in 356 appearances, at an average of 23.52, and scored 3,717 runs, at an average of 16.52.
Wasim was the first bowler in international cricket to take more than 400 wickets in both forms of the game, and only Muttiah Muralitharan has since achieved this.
Wasim also held the record for the most wickets in Cricket World Cups — a total of 55 in 38 matches. Australia's Glenn McGrath broke the record during the 2007 World Cup, ending with a final tally of 71 from 39 matches. On passing Wasim's record, McGrath said, "Wasim Akram, to me, is one of the greatest bowlers of all time. Left-armer, swung it both ways with the new ball and he was so dangerous with the old ball. To go past him is something I will always remember. Probably the other side of the coin is that if you play long enough, you're going to break records here and there."
Uniquely, Wasim took four hat-tricks in international cricket, two each in Tests and ODIs. He is one of only three bowlers to have taken two Test hat-tricks (the others being Hugh Trumble and Jimmy Matthews), and also one of only three bowlers to have taken two ODI hat-tricks (the others being fellow Pakistani Saqlain Mushtaq and Chaminda Vaas of Sri Lanka). Wasim's Test hat-tricks are unique, since they were taken in consecutive Test matches in the same series, against Sri Lanka in 1999. Wasim is also one of only two bowlers to have taken both a Test and ODI hat-trick (the other being fellow Pakistani Mohammad Sami).
Playing in a Test against the West Indies at Lahore in 1990-91, he became one of only six players to have taken four wickets in an over during a Test match. In Wasim's case, the feat was not part of a hat-trick, the third ball of the series being a dropped catch, which allowed a single.
Wasim has also achieved the highest score by a number eight batsman in Test cricket — 257 not out from 363 balls against Zimbabwe at Sheikhupura. The innings contained 12 sixes which is also a world record for Test cricket.
He also has the joint-highest number of Man of the Match awards in Test cricket, along with South African Jacques Kallis, with 17.

Controversies
In 1992, after he had been successful against English batsmen, accusations of ball tampering began to appear in the English press, though no video evidence was ever found. Wasim and Waqar had been able to obtain prodigious amounts of movement from old balls. This phenomenon, termed reverse swing was relatively unknown in England at the time.

A far larger controversy was created when he was alleged to be involved in match fixing. An enquiry commission was set up by Pakistan Cricket Board headed by a Pakistan high court judge Malik Mohammed Qayyum. The judge wrote in his report that:

This commission feels that all is not well here and that Wasim Akram is not above board. He has not co-operated with this Commission. It is only by giving Wasim Akram the benefit of the doubt after Ata-ur-Rehman changed his testimony in suspicious circumstances that he has not been found guilty of match-fixing. He cannot be said to be above suspicion.

Retirement
Wasim retired in 2003, after a brief spell with Hampshire in England. Since then, Wasim has taken up commentary and can currently be seen as a sportscaster for the ESPN Star network, and is also running shows on ARY Digital.

He is married to Huma Mufti, daughter of Mr. Humayaun Mufti. Huma and Wasim have two sons from their marriage of thirteen years.

Wasim Akram

Shahid Afridi

Shahid Afridi Biography
source link (google.com.pk)

Shahid Afridi is a professional cricket player, who was born on March 1, 1980 in Khyber Agency, Pakistan. His parents are of the Afridi tribe in Kohat; he is married to Nadia and has two daughters, Aqsa and Ansha.

Nicknamed ‘Boom Boom Afridi’ for his aggressive batting style, Shahid Afridi is a brilliant all-rounder, as he is also a right-arm leg-spin or medium-paced bowler. In October 1998, he made his Test debut for the Pakistan team against Australia and became a reliable member of his side. Shahid Afridi scored five Test centuries in his career, as of the year 2008; three times against India (1999 and twice in 2006) and twice against the West Indies (2002 and 2005).

His first appearance in an One Day International (ODI) came on October 2, 1996 at Nairobi in a match played against the Kenya cricket team. He rose to become an indispensable member of the Pakistani ODI squad with his remarkable performances since 1996. By making the fastest hundred runs (included six boundaries and eleven 6’s) of 37 balls in an ODI match against Sri Lanka, Shahid Afridi beat the record of Sanath Jayasuriya, a famous Sri Lankan cricketer, on October 4, 1996. He was just 16 years, when he performed this feat and was the youngest player to have achieved such an accomplishment. With Brian Lara, he shares a joint record for scoring the third fastest ODI century out of 45 balls against India in April 2005. By making four of the top eight fastest ODI half centuries, Shahid Afridi has made a mark for himself in the history of ODI cricket. In 2007, he scored 32 runs (including four consecutive sixes) off six balls against Sri Lanka at Abu Dhabi. The over was bowled by Malinga Bandara which is considered to the second most expensive over in the ODI history.

In March 2005, his Test performance with the bat and the ball played a key role in Pakistan’s encounter against India. Shahid Afridi made 50 runs out of 26 balls and walked away with three wickets in the second innings of a Test match claiming the victory for his team and brought the series to a draw. In January 2006, he smashed four consecutive sixes against Harbhajan Singh’s bowling in a Test match against India. On achieving a combination of 5000 runs and 200 wickets, Shahid Afridi is the third player (after Sanath Jayasuriya and Jacques Kallis, a South African cricketer) to accomplish such a feat in the ODI history.

For his commendable performances as a bowler of the Pakistan team in the international 2007 Twenty20, Shahid Afridi earned the Man of the Series award.

He represented the Deccan Chargers (DC) team under the captaincy of VVS Laxman, an Indian cricketer, in the Indian Premier League (IPL) of 2008. His sign-in price was $675,000 and played thirty matches for the DC team. Shahid Afridi scored 367 runs, which included 32 boundaries and 21 sixes with a strike rate of 171.49. By taking 35 wickets, the bowling average of Shahid Afridi was 20.05 at an economy rate of 6.81.

Shahid Afridi