Cricinfo - Players and Officials

Full name Imran Khan Niazi
Born November 25, 1952, Lahore, Punjab
Current age 55 years 317 days
Major teams Pakistan, Dawood Club, Lahore, New South Wales, Oxford University, Pakistan International Airlines, Sussex, Worcestershire
Batting style Right-hand bat
Bowling style Right-arm fast
Other Administrator
Relations Cousin - Javed Burki, Cousin - Majid Khan

Batting and fielding averages

Mat

Inns

Runs

Ave

100

Tests

126

3807

136

37.69

ODIs

175

151

3709

102*

33.41

5105

72.65

First-class

382

582

17771

170

36.79

117

List A

425

384

10100

114*

33.22

Bowling averages

Mat

Inns

Balls

Runs

Wkts

BBI

BBM

Ave

Econ

Tests

142

19458

8258

362

8/58

14/116

22.81

2.54

53.7

ODIs

175

153

7461

4844

182

6/14

26.61

3.89

40.9

First-class

382

65224

28726

1287

8/34

22.32

2.64

50.6

List A

425

19122

11312

507

6/14

22.31

3.54

37.7

Career statistics

Test debut

England v Pakistan at Birmingham, Jun 3-8, 1971 scorecard

Last Test

Pakistan v Sri Lanka at Faisalabad, Jan 2-7, 1992 scorecard

Test statistics

ODI debut

England v Pakistan at Nottingham, Aug 31, 1974 scorecard

Last ODI

England v Pakistan at Melbourne, Mar 25, 1992 scorecard

ODI statistics

First-class span

1969/70 - 1991/92

List A span

1973 - 1991/92

Few would dispute that Imran was the finest cricketer Pakistan has produced, or the biggest heart-throb. Suave, erudite and monstrously talented, he gave cricket in the subcontinent real sex appeal in the 1970s and 1980s. As such he and TV completed the popularisation of the game in his country which Hanif Mohammad and the radio had begun. Thousands, if not millions, who had never dreamt of bowling fast on heartless baked mud suddenly wanted to emulate Imran and his lithe bounding run, his leap and his reverse-swinging yorker. He also made himself into an allrounder worth a place for his batting alone, and captained Pakistan as well as anyone, rounding off his career with the 1992 World Cup. He played hardly any domestic cricket in Pakistan: instead he just flew in for home series from Worcestershire or Sussex, or rather from the more fashionable London salons. His averages (37 with the bat, 22 with the ball) put him at the top of the quartet of allrounders (Ian Botham, Richard Hadlee and Kapil Dev being the others) who dominated Test cricket in the 1980s. And whereas Botham declined steadily, Imran just got better and better: in his last ten years of international cricket he played 51 Tests, averaging a sensational 50 with the bat and 19 with the ball. He gave no quarter during some memorable battles with West Indies - Pakistan drew three series with them at a time when everybody else was being bounced out of sight - and he led Pakistan to their first series victory in England in 1987, taking 10 for 77 with an imperious display in the decisive victory at Headingley. After retirement he remained a high-profile figure, with his marriage - and subsequent split with - the socialite Jemima Goldsmith and a not entirely successful move into the labyrinthine world of Pakistan politics.
Martin Williamson

Nov 15, 2007

The front page of The Independent following Imran Khan's arrest © The Independent

Jun 12, 2007

Imran Khan, former captain and now a politician in Pakistan, wants Pakistan Cricket Board to sue Jamaican authorities © AFP

Mar 29, 2007

A pedestrian in Islamabad stands beneath a billboard showing Inzamam-ul-Haq, Imran Khan and Kamran Akmal © AFP

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