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Friday March 29, 2024

Imran is most successful cricketer-turned-politician

LAHORE: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan may not be having a very good time in politics for the time being, but research conducted by the “Jang Group and Geo Television Network” shows he has been the most successful of all the international cricketers-turned-politicians in the game’s 138-year history since

By Sabir Shah
July 27, 2015
LAHORE: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan may not be having a very good time in politics for the time being, but research conducted by the “Jang Group and Geo Television Network” shows he has been the most successful of all the international cricketers-turned-politicians in the game’s 138-year history since 1877.
Imran is leading a popular Pakistani political party and is holding sway in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, where his party is sitting in the cozy power corridors and calling shots, besides having proved an “Achilles’ heel” for the incumbent Nawaz Sharif regime.
Had former British Prime Minister Alexander Douglas-Home (1903-1995) played international cricket, he could easily have been dubbed the most successful of all the global cricketers-turned-politicians.
He had played 10 First Class matches in the 1920’s, the only British Prime Minister to have achieved this feat ever. Also called Lord Dunglass, he had served as British Prime Minister from 1963 to October 1964.
However, another British Premier John Major also claimed he was a good cricketer and so did his Pakistani counterpart Nawaz Sharif (during 1997) and the 23rd Australian Prime Minister Bob Hawke (served head of government between 1983 and 1991).
Legendary West Indian cricketer Sir Frank Worrell (1924-67) was nominated a Senator from Jamaica before he had died young at 42 only.Along with Everton Weekes and Clyde Walcott, he had formed what was known as the formidable trio called the “Three Ws” of the West Indian cricket.
Former Pakistan Cricket captain, Abdul Hafeez Kardar, had opted to join the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) in 1967 and was made the President of the country’s Cricket Board in 1972 by his close friend and former Premier Zulfikar Ali Bhutto.
Kardar had quit politics when the Bhutto regime was toppled in a General Ziaul Haq-led military coup of July 1977.
India’s Sachin Tendulkar, the most successful international batsman as far as number of runs and hundreds in both Test matches and One Day Internationals are concerned, is currently serving as an Indian Senator on a Congress ticket.
Former Sri Lankan World Cup-winning Captain Arjuna Ranatunga had served as his country’s Deputy Minister for Tourism.Another flashy Sri Lankan captain Sanath Jayasuriya was elected a legislator for his native Matara state in 2010.
Great West Indian fast bowler Wesley Hall had served in the Barbados Senate and the Caribbean island’s House of Assembly. He was appointed the Barbados minister for tourism in 1987. Later he became the Reverend Wesley when he was ordained as a church minister and Sir Wesley when he was knighted in 2012
A famous English cricketer Ted Dexter, who had led his country in the 1964 Ashes series against Australia, had given up captaincy to contest a seat in the general election.However, he had lost to Jim Callaghan, who had gone on to become British Prime Minister.
Indian opening batsman Chetan Chauhan, partner of the great Sunil Gavaskar for many years, had found a place in the Indian Lok Sabha (Lower House of Parliament). He had twice won on a BJP ticket from Amroha (1991 and 1998).
Another Indian opening batsman Navjot Singh Sidhu had won two elections from Amritsar on a BJP ticket.Former Indian Cricket captain Nawab Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi, the late father of Bollywood stars Saif ali Khan and Soha Ali Khan, had contested Lok Sabha polls twice, once in 1971 and once in 1991.
Married to glamorous Bollywood actress Sharmila Tagore, Nawab Patudi had lost both ballot exercises though.Defamed Indian captain Mohammad Azharuddin, banned for life due to his involvement in match fixing, had also won an election on a Congress ticket from Moradabad.
Vinod Kambli, an Indian cricketer, actor and politician, had joined the Lok Bharti Party after retirement and became its vice-president. During the 2009 Vidhan Sabha election, he had contested from Mumbai and had lost.
Similarly, numerous other Indian cricketers like Manoj Prabhakar (banned for match-fixing), Kirti Azad (son of former Bihar Chief Minister Bhagwat Azad), Muhammad Kaif and Yograj Singh (father of the stylish Yuvraj Singh) etc had also tried and tested their skills in the political arena.
Former Pakistani fast bowler Sarfraz Nawaz had contested a Punjab Assembly seat on a PPP ticket in the 1988 elections and was made a Sports Adviser by the then Prime Minister and PPP Chairperson, Benazir Bhutto.Former Pakistani batsman Aftab Gul, who played only six Test matches, was alleged to be a member of late Murtaza Bhutto’s militant Al-Zulfikar Organisation.A successful lawyer these days, Aftab thus had to lead an exiled life in Britain for many years.