Shadab Khan Height, Age, Girlfriend, Wife, Family, Biography & More

Some Lesser Known Facts About Shadab Khan

• Shadab Khan is an international cricketer who plays for the Pakistan National team as a leg spinner and a lower-order attacking batter. He was made the vice-captain of the Pakistan side for the 2021 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup in September 2021.

• He is known for using the bowling crease to good effect. He prefers bowling too wide or too close to the bowling stump that makes it difficult for the batter to adjust with the angle of the delivery. He also loves bowling bit-Slow with higher trajectories, unlike other modern-day spinners that could entice the batter to play a forcing shot in the air and ends up losing his wicket. 64% of his total T20I wickets are “Out Caught”.

• He was raised up in a small town in Mianwali District in Northwest Punjab (Pakistan). Since childhood, he wanted to be a cricketer just like his elder brother. He then started playing cricket on the rough pitches in a farming community near the banks of the Indus River in Punjab province — which is also home to Prime Minister Khan and fellow Pakistan Test player Misbah-ul-Haq. Shadab there practiced daily where he developed his signature leg-break and attacking batting. In 2012, his family shifted to Rawalpindi where he started playing cricket at a nearby club. His childhood coach told about him that
  

  “He sleeps around 9:00 pm and reaches the ground before sunrise. That’s been his routine for years so that he can practice as much as possible. Shadab was so interested in batting that at one time he quit bowling. But I advised him to consider becoming an all-rounder, then he would have a better chance to play top-level cricket and he complied.”

  

  Shadab Khan with his family

• His long time friend Raja Falak Sher recalls a time spent with him by saying
  

  “I remember once we went on a tour to Lahore for a tournament and after the match, all the boys would go sightseeing, but Shadab used to sleep early and would only concentrate on cricket. To this day his routine is the same and that has helped him rise to where he is today.”

  

  Shadab Khan as a kid

   

• While playing Under-17 for a domestic team, he then realized that he can represent his country in cricket at an international level.

• He soon made his mark in the Under-19 Cricket World Cup for Pakistan in January 2016 with his splendid all-round performance. He evolved as the highest wicket-taker in that series. In the same year, while he was coming after playing a domestic game, he got the call from his family that he got selected for the star-studded Islamabad United team as a supplementary pick featuring Pakistani veterans Saeed Ajmal, Misbah-ul-Haq, and Mohammed Sami. This team was coached by the late Dean Jones.
  

  Shadab Khan bowling in Under-19 World Cup against Afghanistan

• He took the key wickets of Eoin Morgan and Kumar Sangakkara in his debut game with an economic spell. His performance graph was gradually getting better and was anxiously knocking on the doors of the Pakistan Team.  His performance soon caught the eyes of critics and was made the captain of the same side two years later.
  

  Shadab Khan celebrating the wicket of Eoin Morgan in a PSL match playing for Islamabad United

• In March 2017, at the young age of 19, he made his T2o International debut against the host Carlos Brathwaite-led West Indian side. He couldn’t get the chance to bat but was impressive with a ball when he scalped the key wickets of Lendl Simmons and Sunil Narine with a record economic rate of 1.75 runs per over. Pakistan went on to win this match with four wickets. He also achieved a rare feat to become the Man of the Series in his debut T20I tournament.
  

  Shadab Khan wrecking up the West Indies batting line-up with his Wristy Leg spin in his debut T20I game

• In the same tour, he also made his ODI debut against the same side. Though, he couldn’t perform much but managed the crucial wickets of Shai Hope and their captain Jason Holder. This time West Indies won that match with four wickets.

• A few days later, he made his test debut on the same tour. Against the score of 312 runs, Pakistan made 393 runs with a lead of 81 runs. Shadab Khan contributed 16 runs coming at the 8th position. Pakistan was given the target of 188 runs in their fourth inning. It was looking like Pakistan’s game. But the visitors were all-out for 81 runs. Shadab Khan there on realized that he is more of a limited-format player rather than a test format.

• On 19 June 2017, the team for the 2017 Champions Trophy was announced where Sarfraz Ahmed was made the captain. Shadab Khan was also included. Pakistan was going as the underdog for the tournament. The reason being their lack of experience, low level of fitness, and their poor performance since the 2015 World Cup. ^[6]Cricket Country

• The first match was against the arch-rival India. India went on to score 319 runs in 48 overs ( overs reduced due to rain). Pakistan was given the target of 289 runs in 41 overs. Chasing the score, Pakistan got all out for 164 runs. Shadab Khan is the third-highest scorer in this game for Pakistan with a score of 14 runs not out till the end. The next game was even tougher.

• It was against AB De Villiers led South-African side. Pakistan was given the target of 220 runs in the allotted 50 overs. The score might seem simple but the pitch was more suited for fast bowlers. Chasing the target, when Pakistan was 119 for 3, the rain stopped play in between. The match was given to Pakistan as they were 19 runs ahead in 27 overs according to the D/L method.

• The next and the later game was like a walk in the park for Pakistan when they defeated Sri Lanka with three wickets at the league stage and a strong England side with eight wickets at the semis. Shadab Khan took an important wicket of Joe Root in this match.

• Then came the most anticipated game of the tournament: the finals against India comprising of star players like Kohli, Rohit Sharma, and Yuvraj Singh. Pakistan batted first and put on the mighty 338 runs on the board. In reply, India started crumbling right from the beginning, losing the key wickets of Rohit and Virat in nine overs. Then came the most trusted duo of Dhoni and Yuvraj Singh who are known for their strong ability to chase especially in tough situations. The Whole of India’s hope is with this partnership. It was a mighty challenge for Pakistan to get rid of this pair. They started cautiously.

• Then came Shadab Khan in 13th over. He gave only four runs in his first five balls. The last ball turned out to be a match-turner. Yuvraj decided to use his pads to defend the ball. But the ball turned sharply and hit its pad first. Umpire gave it a ‘Not Out’. But Shadab decided to review it. His decision paid off and Pakistan got the dangerous man.

• The whole Pakistani crowd was bursting with joy as Pakistan not only won that match but only grabbed their champions trophy. Fakhar Zaman was judged as ‘Man of the Match’, but it was Shadab who played a silent role in their maiden title. He also took the key of Kedar Jadhav.
  

  Pakistan team after winning the Champions Trophy 2017

• He soon scored his first ODI fifty against Sri Lanka a few months later in October. He then took three wickets in that match. As time went by, Shadab was evolving both with bat and ball. On 2 Jan 2018, Shadab joined Hong Kong Island United for the HKT20 blitz the next season as a vice-captain.

• In the Asia Cup 2018, he performed brilliantly in the opening match against Hong Kong scalping their two victims. During the next match against arch-rival India, he bowled Rohit Sharma out finding the gap between his pad and bat and hitting the stump with his googly. Though Pakistan lost that match by eight wickets. Shadab also suffered from a slight injury, as a result, he was omitted from the next match against Afghanistan which Pakistan won later on.

• Shadab was back in the squad for the finals of the Asia Cup against India. Former Indian leg-spinner Sivaramakrishnan termed Shadab as the Trump card before the match. But he couldn’t perform as per expectation and went wicketless. Pakistan lost the finals by nine wickets. Shadab was also trolled for his new goatee hairstyle by his fans.
  

  New-look Shadab Khan #Cricket pic.twitter.com/z2bLp1LUSK

  — Saj Sadiq (@SajSadiqCricket) September 14, 2018

• Luck was still not going in his way, when on 2nd April 2018, in a T20I match against West Indies, he was found guilty of pointing his finger at their opener Chadwick Walton after dismissing him and then abused him. He was fined twenty percent of his match fees. After the match, he admitted his offense though Pakistan won that match convincingly.
  

  Shadab Khan was fined for violating the ICC Code of Conduct

• In May 2018, Pakistan toured England and played their practice game against Northamptonshire where Shadab took ten wickets and a run-out. Just a few months shy of his 20th birthday and 34 international games old, he is already been compared with Pakistani’s spin greats like Abdul Qadir, Mushtaq Ahmed, Shahid Afridi, and Yasir Shah.
  

  Shadab Khan knocking off Northamptonshire’s Josh Hobbs stumps with his fine googly

• But this time, he was more with a bat than a ball with two fifties in two tests and claiming three important wickets including their key opener Alastair Cook.  He was picked ahead of injured Yasir Shah. Pakistan leveled the series 1-1.

• Shadab said during an interview that he is not all bother by any hype around him and instead focusing on improving himself. He further added that
  

  “It’s been an incredible journey so far. From making my international debut against the West Indies to becoming a member of the Champions Trophy winning squad has been a wonderful experience and all I can do is to thank the almighty for his blessings. I understand that this is just the beginning of my career and I am focused on trying to improve myself every time I play and hopefully the results of that improvement will be visible in the future.”

•  He also said
  

  “I know that I have been picked in the squad to replace Yasir Shah and I am aware that I can never match the performances he has put in for Pakistan over the years, but what I can promise is that I will do what it takes to help my side to win on this tour. A lot of work has been done with me on my bowling before we came over to England with Mushtaq Ahmed giving me special advice and now all the coaches including Azhar Mahmood are here to help me to fine-tune my skills for the important task ahead.”

• He also took five wickets in that T20 series which made him climb to the 2nd spot in the ICC T20I ranking only behind Rashid Khan. The next T20 series against Australia in October saw Pakistan whitewashing the host for the first time ever in limited-over cricket. Shadab Khan played a major role in that win. He took the crucial wickets of Glenn Maxwell, Mitchell Marsh, and Chris Lynn. He also took a fine one-handed catch of Chris Lynn, full-stretch diving towards his right.
  

  Shadab Khan taking a stunning catch dismissing Australia’s Chris Lynn

• But the Pakistan team was still struggling with form in ODIs after their defeat against rivals India at the Asia Cup. This time again, Pakistan lost by 47 runs against visitors New Zealand in November 2018. But it was Shadab who stole the show with three wickets when he dismissed their top-order batters in four deliveries of 42nd over. Interestingly, two victims were Leg-Before which shows his accuracy in bowling wicket-to-wicket. Pakistan somehow leveled the series 1-1 with the last match as ‘no result’ due to rain.

• Talking about T20 cricket, Pakistan was comprehensively dominating this format when they whitewashed Kiwis 3-0 in Dubai in October 2018. Shadab once again impressed with three wickets in a series including the key wicket of Kane Williamson during the 3rd T20.

• ICC Men’s World Cup 2019 (England & Wales) was round the corner. Shadab Khan was picked in the 15-man Pakistan squad but was ruled out of the limited-overs series against England right before the mega-event due to illness. Another leg-spinner Yasir Shah replaces him. The Pakistan Cricket Board said in a statement that
  

  “Wrist spinner Shadab Khan has been ruled out of the series against England after tests revealed a virus that will require treatment and rest for, at least, four weeks.”

• But it was later revealed that Shadab was suffering from Hepatitis C. He was then treated by London-based gastroenterology and hepatology specialists. They prescribed him two weeks of medication and complete rest. He later said that
  

  “When you suddenly get to know that you have a viral [infection] in your blood, naturally I got frustrated but my team-mates and friends have been very supportive. I have a strong belief that whatever happens, happens for a reason and for good. I was tensed up on the first day but then I told my friends that whatever happened was in the past. If anything good is to happen, it will happen. So I asked them to avoid talking to me about it.”

• Soon PCB announced that Shadab Khan is declared fit for the ICC World Cup and will be in the 15-man’s squad for the mega-event starting on 30 May 2019. Overjoyed by his inclusion, he said
  

  “I was always hopeful because the viral infection was found at its initial stage,” Shadab said. “With two weeks of medication, it’s out of my blood. Now I am heading to the World Cup. We [Pakistan] have been going there [to England] regularly over the last three years so it isn’t really difficult to acclimatise. All I have to do is to get in my rhythm otherwise I am mentally prepared for the challenge.”

• The team lost their opening game against West Indies but won their second match against the host England by 14 runs. Shadab knocked out their hard-hitting opener Jason Roy and the key batter Joe Root cheaply. The next match was abandoned due to rain against Sri Lanka. Shadab was rested for the next match against Australia which they lost by 41 runs.

• History says that Pakistan has never won an ICC game against their bitter opponent India. This record was still haunting them as they lost the game yet again by 89 runs (DLS method). Shadab Khan was wicketless in this match.

• But Pakistan came back strongly when they won their next match comprehensively after putting 308 runs on the board against South Africa. Shadab took the key wickets of Quinton De Kock (his 50th wicket in ODI), Aiden Markram, and Rassie van der Dussen.
  

  Shadab Khan celebrating after taking a wicket of Quinton De Kock in CWC 2019

• Pakistan then defeated New Zealand, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh in their remaining matches but sadly, couldn’t qualify further. Shadab Khan took three wickets in the remaining matches. New Zealand went on to win their maiden ICC World Cup title after defeating England in the Super-over on boundary count. But nevertheless, Shadab didn’t disappoint the selectors and did justice with his selection.

• His next target was to cement his place in the longest format of the game as a useful all-rounder. Since making his test debut in 2017, he could only take 12 wickets in five test matches.
  

  “I have played a good number of white-ball matches and just five Tests. Therefore, I need to bring improvement in my bowling and batting to cement my place in Test cricket too, as a useful all-rounder.”

  He said before joining the pre-season training camp at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Lahore under the coaching of their former skipper Misbah-ul-Haq.

  

  Shadab Khan at the NCA

• Talking about his batting in the longer formats, he said
  

  “I really need to improve in batting and I am doing a lot of efforts through personal training and batting to bring significant improvement in my batting to be a useful part of the team. It is very imperative in today’s competitive cricket to be a fine all-rounder to support the team with batting and bowling.”

• Their next assignment was the Australian tour where they will be playing three T20s and two tests. Shadab as always is a key member of the squad. He was picked for the Test series as well. This test squad also includes the tallest player in international cricket history Mohammad Irfan (7.1 feet) who returns after six years.

• Pakistan suffered their rare whitewash by Australia in the T20s and the tests. Pakistan could only win their practice game against Cricket Australia XI where Shadab was the pick of the bowlers with three crucial wickets. This series also saw the rise of Australian batting sensation Marnus Labuschagne. Since then, he started working on his batting skills.

• Soon just before an England tour comprising of three tests and T20 in July 2020, it was announced by PCB that Shadab Khan along with Haider Ali, and Haris Rauf are tested positive for COVID-19. As there were no signs of any symptom in Shadab’s report so he was sent for self-isolation. In August, he was back in the T20 squad against England where he scalped his 50th wicket after dismissing Moeen Ali for 8.

• On 18 December 2020, he got the opportunity to captain the side in a T20 against New Zealand due to the absence of Babar Azam. Shadab scored 42 runs off 32 balls but could not prevent the defeat by 5 wickets. He could do much in the remaining matches and Pakistan suffered another series defeat by 2-1.
  

  Shadab Khan playing first time as a Pakistan’s captain for the T20 against New Zealand

• Khan sustained yet another injury in his left thigh during the last T20 at Napier which ruled him out of the entire test series against the host. Team doctor Sohail Saleem said
  

  “After the competition of the six-week period, the medical panel will access and evaluate the injury before making a call on Shadab’s return to competitive cricket.”

  Shadab couldn’t clear the fitness test and was again left out of the series against South Africa comprising of two test matches and three T20s.

• He returned to the squad for the ODI series against South Africa in April where he scored 33 runs and took his side to a three-wicket win. But in the second ODI, the team suffered a major blow when Shadab was excluded from the remaining matches due to a toe injury. He was also ruled out from a T20 series against Zimbabwe starting from April 21 in Harare.

• Next up was the tour of England comprising of three ODIs and equivalent T20 to begin from 8 July. The matches were to be played without fans in the stand. Pakistan’s test captain Azhar Ali said
  

  “It’s a matter of great happiness that we are getting to play again and travel to England. Players are excited and very hungry to play again. A lot of youngsters are there in the team too and none of us have been able to do what we love. Tours of England have always been challenging but our performances are very encouraging. Hopefully we can carry on in the same vein and do better. Our 2016 and 2018 tours were good, we won the Champions Trophy there. We also performed pretty well in the World Cup. The crowd there has been very supportive, a lot of Pakistanis do come to matches. But unfortunately, they won’t be there this time so we will try to give our best and give the people watching at home some entertainment during these tough times.”

• Pakistan was again whitewashed by England in ODIs and suffered a 2-1 loss in the T20s. Shadab Khan was the pick of the bowlers for Pakistan with five wickets. Still, he couldn’t stop the criticism rose on him by the former captain of Pakistan Ramiz Raja who said
  

  “I don’t understand Shadab’s batting. What is his role when he comes out to bat? Is he a savior or a power hitter? Today he could have played easily because they had a lot of overs in the bank. But generally, his batting is going through a rusty period. He should have a profile like Hardik Pandya. He is a power hitter who scores quick fifties. Shadab’s power-hitting has completely gone missing which is saddening because he is so young. This should be his peak time. But we don’t see that kind of batting from him and he needs a lot of work. In this batting lineup Shadab has more value as a power hitter.”

• He then missed the next tour of the West Indies in August 2021 which resulted in a draw. But soon he came back to the T20 side where except the 2nd T20 which Pakistan won, and the rest of all T20 matches were washed off due to rain.

• In September 2021, the Pakistan Team squad was announced for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2021 to begin from 17 October to 14 November. Shadab Khan is picked as a deputy for Babar Azam in a team with Mathew Hayden and Vernon Philander as the batting and bowling coach.
  

  Shadab Khan speaks on the inclusion of Mathew Hayden and Vernon Philander as a coach

• In one of the Twitter battles, one of the fans asked him about the toughest batter and bowler to bowl and faced in his life, to which he replied Rohit Sharma and Lockie Ferguson.

• He revealed that the first match against India in the Champions Trophy 2017 is the most nervous moment in his cricket career while the wicket of Yuvraj Singh in the Champions Trophy finals is the best moment of his life. He considers Hasan Ali and Faheem Ashraf as his best friends in the team. Brian Lara is his favorite among past cricketers.
  

  Meri kahani, highs and lows of my life and career.

  Full video on @IsbUnited’s Youtube

  pic.twitter.com/je5UOj9SJT

  — Shadab Khan (@76Shadabkhan) June 8, 2021

• He was also featured in the Cricinfo’s T20 Team of the Year 2020 along with his compatriot Shaheen Afridi.
  

  Cricinfo T20 Team of the Year 2020

• He once encountered his idol, Steve Smith, in a hotel in Dubai during a PSL 2017. He was there only left awe-struck and could not speak a word. Recalling that moment, he said that
  

  “I didn’t know what to talk to him as I was lost in his coolness. By the time I could realize, the lift ride was over and he walked away, and that’s it. But I want him to recognize me one day.”

• During the 2023 Aisa Cup match between India and Pakistan, Shadab knelt down to help Hardik Pandya with his shoelaces. A picture of him tying Pandya’s shoelaces went viral on the internet, capturing the hearts of countless fans. To many, it symbolized the true essence of sportsmanship and left a lasting impression.
  

  Shadab Khan while tying Hardik Pandya’s shoelaces during the 2023 Aisa Cup