Saeed Anwer

Source(google.com.pk)
Saeed Anwer Biography
Born in Karachi on September 6th 1968, the Pakistan Captain Saeed Anwar
has become one of the best batsmen in the world through hard work, dedication
combined with his exceptional talent. He has a tremendous eye,
excellent timing, and makes use of his wrists better that any
other batsmen in the game. He can find the gaps at will, and more
often that not, a little push from Saeed simply races away to the
boundry. Strong on all sides of the wicket, Saeed’s favorite shot is
the cut shot, which he plays better than any other Pakistani batsmen.
Very strong on the off side, Saeed has the ability to play some
glorious cover drives that are an absolute delight to watch.
His off side shots are so good, that he is considered to be the
best off side player, among left handed batsmen in the world.
The reason for his immaculate off side play is because of his
sound technique. He is solid in defence, yet can destroy any
bowling attack in the world in a matter of minutes. His strength
in timing and the ability to play on the rise, combined with
excellent execution, makes him the best opener to ever come from
Pakistan…far ahead of the likes of Soahil,Raja,and the Mohammad
brothers.
As a first class cricketer, Saeed used to bat in the middle order
however once he made his ODI debut in Australia, he was thrust
into the opener’s role. He began opening the innings in domestic
cricket, and made his way back into the ODI side as a specialist
opener. Despite, having lost out on precious years due to politics
in the PCB, Saeed never lost hope. He made most of the limited
opportunity’s that Imran Khan gave him, yet he was over looked
for the likes of Shoaib Mohammad and Ramiz Raja…players who
never performed outside of Pakistan.
In 1993, Saeed created a new world record..he hit three back
to back ODI hundreds in Sharjah, a feat never before achieved by
any Pakistani player. He was now finally a permanant member of the
ODI side, under Wasim Akram. However, he was still not considered
for a test spot..once again a huge error by the selectors.
In 1994 however, Saeed finally got a chance to show his worth as
a test match plater. He hit a mammoth 169 in New Zealand and
combined it with some important half centuries in the rest of the
series. He had now proven his credentials as a solid test match
player with the temperment and ability to succeed at the level.
Since 1994, Saeed has played another 40 odd test matches, scored
over 3500 runs and averages 47.20. He is simply a brilliant player.
He is also the Captain of the Pakistan team. He has the ability to
lead from the front and become an excellent Captain, as time will
tell.
Saeed is an excellent team man and gets along extremely well with
his team mates, who have nothing but praise for him..as well as fans
and press alike. Saeed is also a Computer Engineer, and his wife
Lubna, is a doctor who takes care of him when he gets his regular
dose of flu:)
Pakistan’s best batsman..is a great asset to the game..and Inshallah
will continue to play for Pakistan…for years to come.

                                         Saeed Anwar

                                          Saeed Anwar

                                          Saeed Anwar

                                          Saeed Anwar

                                             Saeed Anwar

                                             Saeed Anwar

                                         Saeed Anwar

                                        Saeed Anwar

                                Saeed Anwar

                                  Saeed Anwar

                                  Saeed Anwar

Umar Akmal

source(google.com.pk)
Umar Akmal Biography

Kamran Akmal

source(google.com.pk)
Kamran Akmal Biography
Kamran Akmal might fighting fit be the majority vigorous testimony of cricket’s distorted main concerned position Adam Gilchrist. A side at the present rummage around for a volatile batsman who can revolutionize a day, an innings, and a stage by means of the bat and so elongated while you can recognize right wicket keeping glove from left, the position is yours.
There has been diminutive distrust concerning Akmal’s batting. The cleanliness of his constrains and the potency of his wounding and dragging, for the most part on slower subcontinent exteriors, has all the time apprehended a strong magnetism. And when it comes mutually as it did one January morning in Karachi in opposition to India – one of the Test innings of that decade – he makes it in the side as a batsman unaccompanied.
Other than his glove work, which started quit auspiciously at what time he successfully finished the battle between Rashid Latif and Moin Khan in belatedly 2004, has got worse frighteningly and a small number of Pakistan matches are complete exclusive of a lumbering Akmal mistake.
It was not for all time hence, for that he was excellent at what time he started, quit presentable to make an impression Ian Healy. On the other hand uncontrollably cricket in all three systems have consent to methodological blunders move stealthily in and critics and specialists have extended pushed for the need for him to take a break.
To excellence spin, he is frequently as gone astray as the batsmen and Danish Kaneria, in excess of the years, has went through in meticulous. In a filament of fault-ridden performances, the one no one will stop thinking about will be the four dropped catches (and a failed to spot run-out) in the Sydney Test of 2009-10, which permitted Australia to run away with an extraordinary, shocking win. In opposition to this the memory of his Karachi hundred will for all time encounters, devoid of obvious winner ever to be expected to come into sight. The assignation with disagreement does his grounds no high-quality, with his negative response to agree with his relegation from the side in the consequences of a catastrophic Sydney Test in 2009, drawing out an inconsiderate fine and a punitive try-out from the PCB.

Kamran Akmal

Kamran Akmal

Kamran Akmal

Kamran Akmal

Kamran Akmal

Kamran Akmal

Kamran Akmal

Kamran Akmal

Kamran Akmal

Kamran Akmal Smacks 3 Consecutive Sixers Off Sreesanth

1 Over 17 Runs Required - How Kamran Akmal Survived

Kamran Akmal Great Turnaround Against West Indies

Saqlain Mushtaq

Source(Google.Com.Pk)
Saqlain Mushtaq Biography
A trend-setter. Saqlain Mushtaq was perhaps the first offspinner to master the doosra, a delivery that spins away from the batsman even though it is delivered with an offspinner's action. Saqlain has a fast, short-stepping action with a halting delivery, and has a propensity to bowl no-balls, unusually for a bowler with such a short run. He is criticised for attempting too much variation and he often throws in the doosra the first time a batsman faces. Saqlain's international career got off to a splendid start - he was the fastest bowler to 100 one-day wickets, and his phenomenal control meant that he regularly bowled at the death. But his finest moment arguably came in a Test match, at Chennai in 1998-99, when his ten-for allowed Pakistan to sneak nerve-tingling 12-run win against India. However, his stock has fallen a long way since then, with Shoaib Malik, a better batsman than Saqlain, usurping the spinner's spot in the ODI line-up and Danish Kaneria becoming the frontline Test spinner. Saqlain did get an opportunity to have a go at the Indians again in the 2003-04 series, but unflattering figures of 1 for 204 at Multan meant that he was quickly consigned to the scrap heap. He was unable to force his way back ahead of Danish Kaneria and he was blighted by injury after a prolific time with Surrey. However, his career was given a lifeline in 2007 when he joined Mushtaq Ahmed at Sussex and there was even talk of him qualifying for England. That could remain a distant dream, after signing a contract with the unsanctioned Indian Cricket League. Indeed, his ICL contract forced Surrey to severe ties with him after the 2008 season, ending his 11-year relationship with The Oval.
Kamran Abbasi October 2008

Saqlain Mushtaq 

Saqlain Mushtaq 

Saqlain Mushtaq 

Saqlain Mushtaq '

Saqlain Mushtaq 

Saqlain Mushtaq 

Saqlain Mushtaq 

Saqlain Mushtaq 

Saqlain Mushtaq 

Saqlain Mushtaq "DOOSRA" Collection

Saqlain Mushtaq Doosra Against Australia...Amazing Bowling

Wasim Akam

Source(Google.Com.Pk)
WasimAkram Biography
Wasim Akram born 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. Widely regarded as one of the finest fast bowlers ever, Akram holds world records for the most wickets taken in both ODIs (502) and List A cricket (881), and was one of the pioneers of reverse swing bowling. The revolutionary nature of reverse swing initially resulted in accusations of ball tampering, although reverse swing has now been accepted as a legitimate feature of the game. Akram's later career was also tarnished with accusations of match fixing, although these remain unproven.

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. Wasim and Huma have two sons from their marriage of fourteen years. Wasim has also appeared in Fuzon video as a model.

WasimAkram

WasimAkram

WasimAkram

WasimAkram

WasimAkram

WasimAkram

WasimAkram

WasimAkram

WasimAkram

Wasim Akram- The King Of Swing !!

Wasim Akram : The Greatest Bowler Of All Time. Pakistan

Javaid Miandad

Source (Google.Com.pk)
Javaid Miandad Biography
Karachi-based neurologist Saad Shafqat recently completed work on the autobiography of Javed Miandad, titled The Cutting Edge.
Like any other warm-blooded South Asian, cricket has always been a passion for him. New Zealand's visit to Pakistan in 1976-77, the series in which Javed Miandad burst on to the international scene, had a huge impact on Saad, who was just 11 years old then.
Between 1989 and 2000, Shafqat lived in the United States, where he got a PhD in neurology. But the US is a cricketing wilderness and it was a great comfort for Shafqat when he found that he could follow his beloved game on Web sites like rediff.com andCricinfo.
In 2000, Shafqat returned to Pakistan and took up the post of assistant professor of neurology at the Aga Khan University in Karachi.
In an interview with Faisal Shariff, he relives the experience of writing Miandad's autobiography with the legendary batsman who, he says, helped himself to liberal doses of paan masala while working on the book. Excerpts:
Where did the idea for the book germinate?
Like any avid cricket follower, I had been looking forward to Javed Miandad's autobiography ever since his retirement in 1996, but years passed by and... nothing.
In July 2000, I returned home to Karachi after finishing my medical studies in Boston. One of the first things I did after settling into home and job was to get hold of Miandad's mobile number and call him, offering to help write his memoirs.
How much time did it take you to complete the book?
The interviews with Javed lasted about six months, after which it took me a year to finalise the manuscript. We gave it to the publishers in September 2002 and it was finally ready in print in May 2003.
How did you and Miandad work on the book?
It was great fun. I used a micro-cassette recorder with a detachable microphone and recorded conversations with Javed approximately once a week for six months. The line of questioning was very open-ended and followed the general chronology of his career. All his Test and ODI scorecards as well as several Wisdens from the 1970s and 1980s would always be at hand. He would frequently go off at tangents, which usually resulted in the most interesting details. He was mostly talkative, but sometimes he was distracted or tired and it was hard to get him going. At these moments a healthy dose of paan masala [an Indian import] and several minutes of idle chatter could work wonders.
Most of the interviews were in Karachi, either at his mother's home or mine. I also met him for a few sessions at his residence in Lahore, and a couple of times at his flat in London when we were both there for the Pakistan visit in May-June 2001.
I transcribed the tapes myself and wrote out the manuscript as I went along. Javed and one of his sisters-in-law [an English teacher in Karachi] went through each chapter as it was ready and suggested the occasional change.
Since when have you known Miandad?
I didn't know him before doing the book. I first spoke with him in late 2000, when he was the national coach during England's 2000-01 tour of Pakistan. A common friend of ours facilitated the contact. Javed was polite with me, but, at first, dismissive. After some persistence, however, he agreed to see me. I had written a 6,000-word profile of him that I showed him and that he shared with his wife Tahira. I urged him to let me write his story, but he didn't give any definite answer then.
In April 2001, after he had returned from a tour of New Zealand and resigned as the Pakistan coach, he called me to say he wanted to go ahead with the book.
I know he had offers from the UK to get his autobiography done over there, but he wanted his book to be accurate and true to subject, which a UK product obviously wouldn't be. Players like Zaheer Abbas, Imran Khan, and Wasim Akram had published their autobiographies from the UK with English co-authors, and Javed felt those books lacked an intrinsic Pakistani or desi feel. He wanted to do something more along the lines of Sunny Days [Sunil Gavaskar's autobiography], a genuine subcontinental classic.
Which is your favourite chapter in the book?
Being an incurable romantic, the chapter I most enjoyed discussing with Javed was the first one, about his life as a child growing up in Karachi and getting an early start in cricket. It greatly moved me to contemplate how as a little boy Javed had played his strokes in Karachi's crowded streets and its dusty playgrounds, and little did anyone know that one day this same little boy would play the same shots in some of the great Test centres of the world, against some of the most feared and famous bowlers, and in the process push the limits of cricket achievement so far that ultimately the image of an entire nation's cricket would be redefined.
The chapter I most enjoyed writing was 'Top of the World', about winning the 1992 World Cup, which let me relive the whole experience. And the chapter I most enjoyed reading was 'Australian Rules Cricket', which is about Javed take on touring Australia.
Which is Miandad's favourite chapter in the book?
I'm pretty sure the one he most enjoyed narrating was 'Sharjah', which revolves around his famous last-ball six, but covers a lot of other ground as well. He also greatly enjoyed doing the chapter 'Wars with India', which is provocatively titled [laughs], but which I think conveys well the soft corner Javed -- and indeed the silent Pakistani majority -- feels for India and Indian fans.
I know that the chapter he has most enjoyed reading is 'In Search of 365', which deals with the most prolific batting period of his career, between 1987 and 1989. One day during the recording sessions, he told me to put together a list of his scores starting from his 260 against England at the Oval in 1987 through to his 271 against New Zealand at Auckland in 1989. I quickly put together the list and showed him, and he kept poring over it for a long time. It had got him into the right mood and that whole chapter flowed out effortlessly.
The chapter on Imran Khan seems to be very diplomatically written. How much was edited out?
Javed and Imran have an extremely complex relationship, which I think no outsider can claim to fully comprehend. Part of the complexity is having layers and layers of mixed feelings towards each other. I think Javed admires and loathes Imran in equal measure and probably Imran does the same. Javed would have loved to have Imran's societal trappings and Imran would have given an arm and a leg for Javed's cricketing brain. But when it came to playing for Pakistan, they were both in full agreement and cooperated 100 per cent to pool their resources and start winning outside Pakistan.
In the chapter on Imran, Javed made a very conscious effort to be as fair to Imran as possible. This may come across as diplomatic, but that is certainly not his intention. He is just giving Imran his due. Nothing from that chapter has been edited out, I can assure you.
The match-fixing allegations in the book -- how difficult was that for you to write? Was there anything new other than what Miandad has already told the Qayyum Commission?
I followed Javed's instructions. He wanted to address match fixing to the extent that it was relevant to the narrative. He has a commonsense take on the whole thing, summarized on pages 278-279 in the chapter 'Coaching Pakistan'. There really is nothing new in this area that he hasn't already said. Even his concern that a match against England at Sharjah in 1999 may have been fixed has previously been voiced in one of his columns on the Wisden Web site.
What did you learn about Miandad while you were writing the book?
At first, I remained awed simply from the fact that I was discussing cricket with the great Javed Miandad. After a few weeks that wore off, and the sheer enjoyment of being in Javed's company took over.
It was great fun driving around with him in Karachi. Everybody recognises him and he makes it a point to wave back to everyone. Once, a newspaper hawker pushed the full complement of evening newspapers and monthly newsmagazines into the car, but refused to take money. Javed thanked him. A few times I saw flower vendors push fresh bouquets into the car and then quickly back off before Javed could even reach for his wallet. Another time, we stopped at a roadside stall to get paan and the paanwala greeted Javed like an old friend. The two discussed Pakistan's batting options like [Tom] Graveney and [Geoffrey] Boycott assessing the English line-up before a Cornhill Test. He was an old pal, Javed said, and could offer better insights than many professional commentators.
Many people had cautioned me that Javed was supposed to be difficult and temperamental, but I found him to be nothing but a gentleman -- warm, affable, keenly intelligent, and at ease with himself. He has a strong empathetic side and would much rather cheer for the underdog than the favourite. He is also very funny, and greatly enjoys indulging his cutting wit.
Would you do a biography on Miandad since there is no assessment of Javed Miandad in the autobiography?
There is certainly room for a biography on Miandad, because an autobiography cannot be set against the relief of your accomplishments and impact the way a third-person narrative can. I may do one later with a collaborator, perhaps with my friend Kamran Abbasi, who writes a regular column for Wisden Cricket Monthly. I wouldn't be doing it for myself, though. For a team with such a successful and interesting history, the literature on Pakistan cricket is pathetically sparse. I would like to do everything I can to help add to this body of writing.
Karachi-based neurologist Saad Shafqat recently completed work on the autobiography of Javed Miandad, titled The Cutting Edge.
Like any other warm-blooded South Asian, cricket has always been a passion for him. New Zealand's visit to Pakistan in 1976-77, the series in which Javed Miandad burst on to the international scene, had a huge impact on Saad, who was just 11 years old then.
Between 1989 and 2000, Shafqat lived in the United States, where he got a PhD in neurology. But the US is a cricketing wilderness and it was a great comfort for Shafqat when he found that he could follow his beloved game on Web sites like rediff.com andCricinfo.
In 2000, Shafqat returned to Pakistan and took up the post of assistant professor of neurology at the Aga Khan University in Karachi.
In an interview with Faisal Shariff, he relives the experience of writing Miandad's autobiography with the legendary batsman who, he says, helped himself to liberal doses of paan masala while working on the book. Excerpts:
Where did the idea for the book germinate?
Like any avid cricket follower, I had been looking forward to Javed Miandad's autobiography ever since his retirement in 1996, but years passed by and... nothing.
In July 2000, I returned home to Karachi after finishing my medical studies in Boston. One of the first things I did after settling into home and job was to get hold of Miandad's mobile number and call him, offering to help write his memoirs.
How much time did it take you to complete the book?
The interviews with Javed lasted about six months, after which it took me a year to finalise the manuscript. We gave it to the publishers in September 2002 and it was finally ready in print in May 2003.
How did you and Miandad work on the book?
It was great fun. I used a micro-cassette recorder with a detachable microphone and recorded conversations with Javed approximately once a week for six months. The line of questioning was very open-ended and followed the general chronology of his career. All his Test and ODI scorecards as well as several Wisdens from the 1970s and 1980s would always be at hand. He would frequently go off at tangents, which usually resulted in the most interesting details. He was mostly talkative, but sometimes he was distracted or tired and it was hard to get him going. At these moments a healthy dose of paan masala [an Indian import] and several minutes of idle chatter could work wonders.
Most of the interviews were in Karachi, either at his mother's home or mine. I also met him for a few sessions at his residence in Lahore, and a couple of times at his flat in London when we were both there for the Pakistan visit in May-June 2001.
I transcribed the tapes myself and wrote out the manuscript as I went along. Javed and one of his sisters-in-law [an English teacher in Karachi] went through each chapter as it was ready and suggested the occasional change.
Since when have you known Miandad?
I didn't know him before doing the book. I first spoke with him in late 2000, when he was the national coach during England's 2000-01 tour of Pakistan. A common friend of ours facilitated the contact. Javed was polite with me, but, at first, dismissive. After some persistence, however, he agreed to see me. I had written a 6,000-word profile of him that I showed him and that he shared with his wife Tahira. I urged him to let me write his story, but he didn't give any definite answer then.
In April 2001, after he had returned from a tour of New Zealand and resigned as the Pakistan coach, he called me to say he wanted to go ahead with the book.
I know he had offers from the UK to get his autobiography done over there, but he wanted his book to be accurate and true to subject, which a UK product obviously wouldn't be. Players like Zaheer Abbas, Imran Khan, and Wasim Akram had published their autobiographies from the UK with English co-authors, and Javed felt those books lacked an intrinsic Pakistani or desi feel. He wanted to do something more along the lines of Sunny Days [Sunil Gavaskar's autobiography], a genuine subcontinental classic.
Which is your favourite chapter in the book?
Being an incurable romantic, the chapter I most enjoyed discussing with Javed was the first one, about his life as a child growing up in Karachi and getting an early start in cricket. It greatly moved me to contemplate how as a little boy Javed had played his strokes in Karachi's crowded streets and its dusty playgrounds, and little did anyone know that one day this same little boy would play the same shots in some of the great Test centres of the world, against some of the most feared and famous bowlers, and in the process push the limits of cricket achievement so far that ultimately the image of an entire nation's cricket would be redefined.
The chapter I most enjoyed writing was 'Top of the World', about winning the 1992 World Cup, which let me relive the whole experience. And the chapter I most enjoyed reading was 'Australian Rules Cricket', which is about Javed take on touring Australia.
Which is Miandad's favourite chapter in the book?
I'm pretty sure the one he most enjoyed narrating was 'Sharjah', which revolves around his famous last-ball six, but covers a lot of other ground as well. He also greatly enjoyed doing the chapter 'Wars with India', which is provocatively titled [laughs], but which I think conveys well the soft corner Javed -- and indeed the silent Pakistani majority -- feels for India and Indian fans.
I know that the chapter he has most enjoyed reading is 'In Search of 365', which deals with the most prolific batting period of his career, between 1987 and 1989. One day during the recording sessions, he told me to put together a list of his scores starting from his 260 against England at the Oval in 1987 through to his 271 against New Zealand at Auckland in 1989. I quickly put together the list and showed him, and he kept poring over it for a long time. It had got him into the right mood and that whole chapter flowed out effortlessly.
The chapter on Imran Khan seems to be very diplomatically written. How much was edited out?
Javed and Imran have an extremely complex relationship, which I think no outsider can claim to fully comprehend. Part of the complexity is having layers and layers of mixed feelings towards each other. I think Javed admires and loathes Imran in equal measure and probably Imran does the same. Javed would have loved to have Imran's societal trappings and Imran would have given an arm and a leg for Javed's cricketing brain. But when it came to playing for Pakistan, they were both in full agreement and cooperated 100 per cent to pool their resources and start winning outside Pakistan.
In the chapter on Imran, Javed made a very conscious effort to be as fair to Imran as possible. This may come across as diplomatic, but that is certainly not his intention. He is just giving Imran his due. Nothing from that chapter has been edited out, I can assure you.
The match-fixing allegations in the book -- how difficult was that for you to write? Was there anything new other than what Miandad has already told the Qayyum Commission?
I followed Javed's instructions. He wanted to address match fixing to the extent that it was relevant to the narrative. He has a commonsense take on the whole thing, summarized on pages 278-279 in the chapter 'Coaching Pakistan'. There really is nothing new in this area that he hasn't already said. Even his concern that a match against England at Sharjah in 1999 may have been fixed has previously been voiced in one of his columns on the Wisden Web site.
What did you learn about Miandad while you were writing the book?
At first, I remained awed simply from the fact that I was discussing cricket with the great Javed Miandad. After a few weeks that wore off, and the sheer enjoyment of being in Javed's company took over.
It was great fun driving around with him in Karachi. Everybody recognises him and he makes it a point to wave back to everyone. Once, a newspaper hawker pushed the full complement of evening newspapers and monthly newsmagazines into the car, but refused to take money. Javed thanked him. A few times I saw flower vendors push fresh bouquets into the car and then quickly back off before Javed could even reach for his wallet. Another time, we stopped at a roadside stall to get paan and the paanwala greeted Javed like an old friend. The two discussed Pakistan's batting options like [Tom] Graveney and [Geoffrey] Boycott assessing the English line-up before a Cornhill Test. He was an old pal, Javed said, and could offer better insights than many professional commentators.
Many people had cautioned me that Javed was supposed to be difficult and temperamental, but I found him to be nothing but a gentleman -- warm, affable, keenly intelligent, and at ease with himself. He has a strong empathetic side and would much rather cheer for the underdog than the favourite. He is also very funny, and greatly enjoys indulging his cutting wit.
Would you do a biography on Miandad since there is no assessment of Javed Miandad in the autobiography?
There is certainly room for a biography on Miandad, because an autobiography cannot be set against the relief of your accomplishments and impact the way a third-person narrative can. I may do one later with a collaborator, perhaps with my friend Kamran Abbasi, who writes a regular column for Wisden Cricket Monthly. I wouldn't be doing it for myself, though. For a team with such a successful and interesting history, the literature on Pakistan cricket is pathetically sparse. I would like to do everything I can to help add to this body of writing.

Javaid Miandad

 Javaid Miandad

Javaid Miandad

Javaid Miandad

 Javaid Miandad

 Javaid Miandad

 Javaid Miandad

 Javaid Miandad

 Javaid Miandad

Javaid Miandad

Javaid Miandad

Javaid Miandad

Javaid Miandad

Javed Miandad's Famous SIXER @ Sharjah

Cricket's GREATEST FIGHT- RARE FULL FOOTAGE- Javed Miandad Vs Dennis Lillee

Umar Gul

Source(Google.Com.Pk)
Umar Gul Bography

Full name Umar Gul

Born April 14, 1984, Peshawar, North-Western Frontier Province

Major teams Pakistan, Gloucestershire, Habib Bank Limited, Kolkata Knight Riders, North West Frontier Province, North West Frontier Province Panthers, Pakistan A, Pakistan International Airlines, Peshawar, Peshawar Panthers, Western Australia

Playing role Bowler

Batting style Right-hand bat

Bowling style Right-arm fast-medium

The least-hyped but most successful and assured Pakistan pace product of the last few years, Umar Gul is the latest in Pakistan's assembly-line of pace-bowling talent. He had played just nine first-class matches when called up for national duty in the wake of Pakistan's poor 2003 World Cup. On the flat tracks of Sharjah, Gul performed admirably, maintaining excellent discipline and getting appreciable outswing with the new ball.


He isn't express but bowls a very quick heavy ball and his exceptional control and ability to extract seam movement marks him out. Further, his height enables him to extract bounce on most surfaces and from his natural back of a length, it is a useful trait. His first big moment in his career came in the Lahore Test against India in 2003-04. Unfazed by a daunting batting line-up, Gul tore through the Indian top order, moving the ball both ways off the seam at a sharp pace. His 5 for 31 in the first innings gave Pakistan the early initiative which they drove home to win the Test.


Unfortunately, that was his last cricket of any kind for over a year as he discovered three stress fractures in his back immediately after the Test. The injury would have ended many an international career, but Gul returned, fitter and sharper than before in late 2005. He returned in a Pakistan shirt against India in the ODI series at home in February 2006 and in Sri Lanka showed further signs of rehabilitation by lasting both Tests but it was really the second half of 2006, where he fully came of age. Leading the attack against England and then the West Indies as Pakistan's main bowlers suffered injuries, Gul stood tall, finishing Pakistan's best bowler.


Since then, as Mohammad Asif and Shoaib Akhtar have floundered, Gul has become Pakistan's spearhead and one of the best fast bowlers in the world. He is smart enough and good enough to succeed in all three formats and 2009 proved it: he put together a patch of wicket-taking in ODIs, on dead pitches in Tests (including a career-best six-wicket haul against Sri Lanka) and established himself as the world's best Twenty20 bowler, coming on after the initial overs and firing in yorkers on demand.


He had hinted at that by being leading wicket-taker in the 2007 World Twenty20; over the next two years he impressed wherever he went, in the IPL for the Kolkatta Knight Riders and in Australia's domestic Twenty20 tournament. Confirmation came on the grandest stage: having poleaxed Australia in a T20I in Dubai with 4-8, he was the best bowler and leading wicket-taker as Pakistan won the second World Twenty20 in England. The highlight was 5-6 against New Zealand, the highest quality exhibition of yorker bowling. He is not a one-format pony, however, and will remain a crucial cog in Pakistan's attack across all formats.

Umar Gul

Umar Gul

Umar Gul

Umar Gul

Umar Gul

Umar Gul

Umar Gul

Umar Gul

Umar Gul

Yousuf Pathan Abuses To Umar Gul

Umar Gul Vs Sohail Tanvir Both Drop Catches On Each Other's Ball - Pak Vs Sri Lanka 1st ODI 2012