ICC T20 World Cup 2022:  'He Is An Excellent Bowler' - Imran Khan Heaps Praise On Pakistan Fast Bowler Haris Rauf

Before the start of the ICC T20 World Cup 2022, Imran Khan, former Pakistan Prime Minister and 1992 World Cup-winning captain, heaped praise on pacer Haris Rauf and termed him an “excellent bowler” while speaking to the locals.

After an emergency landing at Dera Ismail Khan on his way to Bani Gala, the former all-rounder tried to interact with the locals of Adiala village in Punjab province.

During the conversation, the former Pakistan all-rounder asked about his favourite cricketers of the younger generation. After mentioning pace ace Shaheen Shah Afridi, he also praised speedster Haris Rauf.

Haris Rauf Is An Excellent Bowler – Imran Khan

“Wo bada accha bowler hai,” Imran Khan was heard saying in the video.

ڈیرہ اسماعیل خان سے واپسی پر ہیلی کاپٹر کی اڈیالہ کے نواحی گاؤں کے قریب لینڈنگ

عمران خان مقامی افراد میں گھُل مل گئے

مقامی افراد سے دلچسپ گفتگو
عمران خان براستہ سڑک بنی گالہ روانہ ہو گئے pic.twitter.com/g6pTjWmu6q

— Azhar Mashwani (@MashwaniAzhar) October 8, 2022

When Imran Khan asked the locals about the wicketkeeper-batter, someone in the audience mentioned Mohammad Rizwan’s sluggish batting style. Rizwan has been criticised for his slow game. He has been scoring runs and batting well, but because of his strike rate, he has come under criticism.

“Rizwan plays a lot of balls. He scores 50 of 45 balls,” a man could be heard complaining to the former captain.

Haris Rauf took three wickets in the final over of his spell, which was the 19th over of the game, and handed a big blow to New Zealand as they looked to score more runs in the death overs. He finished his spell with three wickets for 28 runs and Pakistan defeated New Zealand by six wickets in Christchurch as they reached the target with 10 balls to spare.

The 28-year-old will lead Pakistan’s fast bowling attack at the T20 World Cup along with Afridi in Australia. He made his international debut against Bangladesh in 2020.

The right-arm fast bowler has represented Pakistan in 15 One-Day Internationals (ODIs) and 49 Twenty20 Internationals (T20Is).

In T20Is, he has 62 wickets with an average of 23.41 at an economy of 8.31. Meanwhile, he has 29 wickets in ODIs with an average of 25.37 at an economy of 5.79. His best T20 figures are 4 for 22 and 4 for 65 in ODIs.

Also read: ICC T20 World Cup 2022: Mahela Jayawardene Joins Sri Lanka Cricket Team As Consultant Coach To Provide Strategic Planning