Once a cricketer makes their international cricketing debut, their career is well and truly established. A life in the limelight is set and very seldomly does a cricketer have to find different means to live off the field. However, here is a tragic and unfortunate tale of a former Pakistan cricketer, Arshad Khan, who represented the Pakistan national cricket team from 1998 to 2006. Arshad was an off-spinner who could make batsmen dance to his tunes at the time. But luck was not on Arshad’s side as the former spinner is currently a taxi-driver.
As reported, a few years ago, a cricket fan booked a cab and to his surprise, the cab driver would turn out to be former Pakistan cricketer, Arshad Khan. The fan took to social media to share the story of Arshad, who is currently a cab driver and lives in Sydney, Australia.
At first, the fan did not recognize him and after they got to talking, the driver mentioned that he had played for the Pakistan cricket team and for the Lahore Badshas in the Indian Cricket League (ICL). On seeing the cab driver clearly and knowing his full name, the fan was in utter shock.
Arshad’s career has been full of ups and downs, with the downs commencing with Saqlain Musta’s rise in international cricket. The off-spinner is fondly remembered for dismissing Sachin Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag in the same match.
The off-spinner made his ODI debut for Pakistan in 1993 against Zimbabwe and has played 60 One Day Internationals (ODI) for Pakistan, where he has claimed a total of 57 wickets and has registered a best figure of 4/33. Arshad made his Test debut for the Pakistan cricket team in 1997 against West Indies and has played 9 Test matches for his nation, in which he claimed an impressive 32 wickets and has a career best figure of 5/38, against Sri Lanka, his only fifer in Test cricket.
Arshad was back in the limelight when Pakistan toured India in 2005. The off-spinner bagged 7 wickets in five matches played, claiming the wickets of MS Dhoni, Yuvraj Singh, Mohammad Kaif and Harbhajan Singh in the series. Helast played a Test match for Pakistan was also in 2005, against India. He also played his final ODI for Pakistan, against India.
Arshad’s career was hampered once the off-spinner decided to join the unsanctioned Indian Cricket League and his hopes of returning to the national team was diminished.
It is now known that the former Pakistan cricketer still drives a cab in Sydney in order to make ends meet.
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