Iftikhar Anjum

Iftikhar Anjum

Pakistan

Full name Rao Iftikhar Anjum
Born December 1, 1980, Khanewal, Punjab
Current age 26 years 90 days
Major teams Pakistan, Agriculture Development Bank of Pakistan, Islamabad Cricket Association
Also known as Rao Iftikhar
Batting style Right-hand bat
Bowling style Right-arm medium

Statsguru

Batting and fielding averages

	Mat	Inns	NO	Runs	HS	Ave	BF	SR	100	50	4s	6s	Ct	St
Tests	1	1	1	9	9*	-	39	23.07	0	0	2	0	0	0
ODIs	26	15	13	89	19*	44.50	155	57.41	0	0	3	0	8	0
First-class	80	123	27	1616	78	16.83			0	5			49	0
List A	61	37	18	270	39	14.21			0	0			23	0
Twenty20	8	7	2	80	24	16.00	82	97.56	0	0			0	0

Bowling averages

	Mat	Balls	Runs	Wkts	BBI	BBM	Ave	Econ	SR	4	5	10
Tests	1	84	62	0	-	-	-	4.42	-	0	0	0
ODIs	26	1205	925	19	2/13	2/13	48.68	4.60	63.42	0	0	0
First-class	80	14779	7864	338	7/59		23.26	3.19	43.72		21	3
List A	61	2996	2279	66	4/44	4/44	34.53	4.56	45.39	1	0	0
Twenty20	8	176	216	9	2/27	2/27	24.00	7.36	19.55	0	0	0

Career statistics
Only Test	Sri Lanka v Pakistan at Kandy - Apr 3-7, 2006
ODI debut	Pakistan v Zimbabwe at Multan - Sep 30, 2004
Last ODI	South Africa v Pakistan at Johannesburg - Feb 14, 2007
First-class span	1999/00 - 2006/07
List A span	1998/99 - 2006/07
Twenty20 span	2004/05 - 2006/07

Profile

Rao Iftikhar Anjum is another addition to Pakistan's seemingly endless production line of pace bowlers. Iftikhar, however, is more Aaqib Javed than Wasim Akram or Waqar Younis, and his outswinger is considered by many to be as effective as Aaqib's. He can bowl reverse-swing - a prerequisite for Pakistani bowlers, when the ball gets a bit rougher, with good control over his yorkers. Iftikhar has performed consistently well in the domestic circuit since making his debut three years ago, taking over 200 wickets on the generally lifeless pitches of Pakistan. It was his stellar performances in the current domestic season that brought him to national attention. Iftikhar led his team - the Zarai Taraqiati Bank Limited - to victory in the Patron's Trophy final against WAPDA, taking seven wickets in the first innings and ending with ten in the match. Not surprisingly, he was included in Pakistan's one-day squad for the series against India in 2004, before making his debut in the Paktel Cup seven moths later. He has since played 19 ODIs and has proved himself adept as a back-up bowler. But continuing injuries to Pakistan's frontline pacers means he remains perenially in the picture and he was rewarded with a Test debut against Sri Lanka in April 2006. Though he was expensive and wicketless, he would have been satisfied with a winning debut. With three of Pakistan's leading fast bowlers missing from the England series that summer, he was called up for the Tests but the unfortunate death of his father meant a return home and missing out on the Test series. And due to the regular injuries suffered by Pakistan's plethora of fast bowlers, he remains a permanent part of Pakistan's wider plans, including the 2007 World Cup.