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[[دوتنه:Konferenz Pakistan und der Westen - Imran Khan (4155877864) cropped.jpg|بټنوک|250px|کیڼ|عمران خان نیازی]]
{{ژباړل}}
{{Infobox Cricketer |
flag = Flag of Pakistan.svg |
nationality = Pakistani |
country = Pakistan |
country abbrev = PAK |
name = Imran Khan |
picture = cricket no pic.png |
batting style = Right-handed batsman (RHB) |
bowling style = Right-arm [[Fast bowling|fast]] (RF) |
tests = 88 |
test runs = 3807 |
test bat avg = 37.69 |
test 100s/50s = 6/18 |
test top score = 136 |
test overs = 3106 |
test wickets = 362 |
test bowl avg = 22.81 |
test 5s = 23 |
test 10s = 6 |
test best bowling = 8/58 |
test catches/stumpings = 28/0 |
ODIs = 175 |
ODI runs = 3709 |
ODI bat avg = 33.41 |
ODI 100s/50s = 1/19 |
ODI top score = 102* |
ODI overs = 1241.1 |
ODI wickets = 182 |
ODI bowl avg = 26.61 |
ODI 5s = 1 |
ODI best bowling = 6/14 |
ODI catches/stumpings = 36/0 |
date = 5 January |
year = 2005 |
source = http://www.cricinfo.com/link_to_database/PLAYERS/PAK/I/IMRAN_KHAN_07001383/
}}
'''Imran Khan''' ([[Urdu]]: محمد عمران خان نیازی) ('''Muhammad Imran Khan [[Niazi]]'''; born [[November 25]] [[1952]]) is a [[Pakistan]]i former [[cricketer]] turned politician. Imran played [[Test cricket]] for [[Pakistani cricket team|Pakistan]] between [[1971]] and [[1992]], and was [[captain (cricket)|captain]] of the national team when they won the World Cup in 1992. Currently, Imran is a member of [[Majlis-e-Shoora|Parliament]] and chairman of his own political party, the [[Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf|Tehreek-e-Insaf]] (Movement for Justice).
Imran is an ethnic [[Pashtun]] of the [[Niazi]] clan; the family has lived in Punjab for centuries, speaks Punjabi, and hence is considered [[Punjabi]]. Imran attended Aitchison College in Lahore until he finished middle school, then entered the [[Royal Grammar School, Worcester]], before completing his formal schooling with an undergraduate degree in economics from [[Keble College, Oxford]]. While at University, Imran was also the [[captain (cricket)|captain]] of the [[Oxford University Cricket Club|Oxford University cricket team]] in 1974. He comes from a cricketing family, with two of his cousins Javed Burki and Majid Khan also having played Test cricket for Pakistan.
Imran is seen as one of the finest [[all-rounder]]s the game has ever produced, along with [[Garfield Sobers]], [[Ian Botham]], [[Kapil Dev]] and [[Richard Hadlee]]. He was one of the fastest bowlers of the world during the late 1970s and early 1980s and in the later half of his career, one of the best batsmen in the [[Pakistan cricket team|Pakistan]] team. More significantly, as a captain, he transformed the [[Pakistan cricket team|Pakistan]] team and moulded it into a unit, otherwise famous for lacking the discipline needed to harness the considerable talent.
Imran is not only known for his performances on the field but off the field as well. Labelled by some as an international playboy, Imran has had many high profile girlfriends both in England and Australia as well as the Sub-continent. Voted as the Sexiest Man of The Year in Australia, Imran has been linked to Susannah Costantine, ex-supermodel Marie Helving, artist Emma Sargeant and [[Bollywood]] film star [[Zeenat Aman]].
== Unimpressive debut ==
Imran made his [[Test cricket|Test]] debut against [[England]] at [[Birmingham]] in [[1971]] at the age of 18. His performance was unimpressive as his wayward medium pace bowling proved short of what was required at that level. By the end of the series, the senior cricketers in the team had written him off as a Test-standard cricketer.
Imran didn't return to [[Pakistan]] after the series and instead joined the [[Royal Grammar School Worcester]]. There was little progress in his career over the next two years because he struggled to get into the Worcestershire county team and the veterans of the team such as [[Glenn Turner]] and [[Norman Gifford]] encouraged him to concentrate on his batting as they felt that he did not have the potential of a [[fast bowler]].
The turning point in Imran's career came in [[1973]], when his grades at school were good enough for admission to [[Oxford University]]. This gave him a chance to play regular domestic cricket, and the added responsibility of being the captain spurred him into becoming a better batsman as well as a better bowler.
عمران خان خپل لومري امتحاني لوبه په كال نوولسووه يواويا كي په اتلس كلني كي د انكلستان خلاف په برمنكهم كي پيل كره
== Transformation into a fast bowler ==
Imran returned to the Pakistan cricket team briefly in 1974, but didn't do well enough to become a regular in the team. It was not until late in 1976, following a successful season with his county club, Worcestershire, that he was picked again for the national squad. His opponents were [[New Zealand]], which included two of his former teammates from Worcestershire, [[John Parker]] and [[Glenn Turner]]. Imran picked them out for some hostile bowling, to prove to them that they were incorrect in their earlier assessment of his potential as a [[fast bowler]].
At the beginning of 1977, Imran still reckoned himself to be a better batsman than bowler, a view not shared by the team. This changed dramatically in January 1977, when in a matter of few days during the three Test series in [[Australia]], he was transformed from an erratic medium pacer to a fast bowler of genuine pace. [[Pakistan]] scored an expected win in the deciding match of the series, thanks largely to his 12 wickets haul. This rapid improvement was mentioned by [[Dennis Lillee]] in his autobiography: "He improved so much as the tour progressed that I couldn't recognize the finished product against what I had seen of him in England in 1975. At that stage of his career, Imran was if anything a better batsman than a bowler".
Following the Australian series, he toured the [[West Indies]], where he met [[Tony Greig]] who signed him up for [[Kerry Packer]]'s [[World Series Cricket]]. The two years of intense cricket at [[World Series Cricket]] molded him into a more complete [[fast bowler]]. Under the guidance of [[John Snow]] and [[Mike Procter]], his bowling action became side-on, totally different from his javelin thrower like action of the early 1970s. This new action helped him mix his stock in-swinging deliveries with the one that left the right hand batsman. His credentials as one of the fastest bowlers of the world were further established when he finished third at a fast bowling contest at [[Perth, Western Australia|Perth]] in early 1979, behind [[Jeff Thompson]] and [[Michael Holding]], but ahead of [[Dennis Lillee]], [[Garth Le Roux]] and [[Andy Roberts]].
As the 1980s progressed, he began to [[reverse swing]] the old ball significantly, an art that was known to very few bowlers at that time. This was a skill that he passed on to his successors, [[Wasim Akram]] and [[Waqar Younis]], at the end of the decade.
== Captain of the Pakistan Cricket Team ==
Imran took over the captaincy of the [[Pakistan cricket team|Pakistan]] team from [[Javed Miandad]] in early 1982. Many who thought that this would adversely affect his cricket as had happened to [[Ian Botham]], were sceptical about this move. But as was the case when he captained [[Oxford University]], the extra responsibility helped him take his performances to a higher level.
His first year as the captain was the peak of his career as a fast bowler as well as an all-rounder. Imran topped both the bowling and batting averages against [[English cricket team|England]] in the three Test series in [[1982]], taking 21 wickets and averaging 56 with the bat. Later the same year, he devastated the formidable [[Indian cricket team|Indian]] batting on the flat [[Pakistani]] wickets by taking 40 wickets in six Tests at an average of 13.95.
By the end of the series against [[Indian cricket team|India]] in 1982-83, Imran had taken 88 wickets in 13 Test matches over a period of one year. His career took a severe blow towards the end of the the Test series against India, as he suffered from a stress fracture in the shin which kept him out of cricket for more than two years. An experimental treatment funded by the [[Pakistan government]] helped him recover by the end of 1984 and he made a successful comeback to international cricket in the later part of the 1984-85 season.
Between 1985 and 1992, Imran led [[Pakistan cricket team|Pakistan]] to its first series win in England and India, as well as to three creditable draws against the West Indies. He was declared the "man of the series" for the series wins in England and India, as well as two of the drawn series against the West Indies, further strengthening his image of reaching his peak against the strongest opposition.
As a captain Imran's focus was on taking a lot of responsibility on himself or "leading from the front" as he described it, thereby setting standards for others to follow. This was contrary to the widely accepted norm of a good captain being more of a strategic planner, like England's [[Mike Brearley]]. His approach was very successful in getting the best out of the younger players of the team and the [[Pakistani]] cricket team achieved unprecedented success during this period, despite not having as brilliant a set of players as in the 1970s or the 1990s. However, he was often criticized by some in the media, as well as a few former players for being "authoritarian".
Imran was also notable for being the first cricketer to argue fervently in favor of neutral umpires. He led the initiative by asking for neutral umpires for the home series against [[West Indies]] in 1986-87 and 1990-91, as well as the home series against India in 1989-90.
== World Cup 1992 ==
Imran's ultimate moment of glory as a captain and cricketer came at the end of his career, when he led Pakistan to victory in the [[cricket World Cup]] 1992. The highlight of this win was the fact that [[Pakistan]] recovered from a very poor start, thanks largely to some young players in their team who had barely been heard of prior to the World Cup.
A combination of a shoulder injury that he carried through the tournament as well as differences with some senior members over the fact that many of the prizes (or rewards) were being garnered by Imran's charity hospital led to his retirement after the World Cup.
== Political life and social work ==
Since retiring from Pakistani Test cricket, Khan has been devoting most of his time to [[Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital & Research Centre]], a state-of-the-art charitable cancer hospital he established in Lahore using donations.
In recent years he has started a socio-political movement in Pakistan known as ''[[Movement for Justice]]'' (''Tehrik-e-insaaf'' in [[Urdu]]) and ran for office in the National Elections. He became a Member of Parliament for Mianwali in the October 2002 elections. He is very critical of the judicial system in Pakistan, which he says prevents accountability for the elite class in Pakistan.
Amongst his honours include being awarded the [[Hilal-e-Imtia]]z in 1993 by the Pakistani government, Honorary Fellow of Keble College, Oxford and [[Wisden Cricketer of the Year]] 1983.
Imran Khan is now a politician, admired for his sincerity but is also criticized for his confused political stand on some issues. Imran Khan was appointed as Chancellor of the [[University of Bradford]] from [[28 April]] [[2005]].
In [[1995]], he married [[Jemima Goldsmith|Jemima]] (aka Haiqa) Khan who is the daughter of the late British billionaire [[Sir James Goldsmith]]. [[Jemima Khan]] embraced [[Islam]] before she married Khan. They announced their divorce on [[22 June]] [[2004]]. They still visit each other with the children.
== Controversial statements ==
Imran Khan is known for making a few politically charged statements that have raised eyebrows even when he was the captain of the Pakistan team and later in his role as a politician. The first of these statements came during an India Pakistan match in [[Sharjah]] where Imran remarked, "Let's settle the Kashmir issue over the cricket match". Though Imran claimed that he had made that statement only casually, few were impressed by this apparent insensitivity to the Kashmir problem.
Later as leader of his party in 2005, led a protest rally against the US led coalition which had desecrated the [[Koran]] and made statements denouncing the Musharraf-Bush coalition.
== Further reading ==
* Khan, Imran, ''All Round View'', 1988.
* Tennant, Ivor, ''Imran Khan'', 1994.
* [http://content.cricinfo.com/pakistan/content/player/40560.html CricInfo Player Profile : Imran Khan]
== External links ==
* [http://www.insaf.org.pk/ Tehreek-e-Insaf]
* http://www.famousmuslims.com/imrankhan.htm
* [http://www.islamicamagazine.com/content/view/50/109/ Interview with Imran Khan]
{{All-rounders}}
[[وېشنيزه:د ۱۹۵۲م کال زېږدنې]]
[[وېشنيزه:د پاکستان د کريکټ ملي لوبډله]]
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