Mohammad Hafeez facts for kids

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Mohammad Hafeez

Mohammad Hafeez in 2017
Personal information
Born	(1980-10-17) 17 October 1980 (age 44) Sargodha, Punjab, Pakistan
Nickname	Chanda, Professor
Height	1.75 m (5 ft 9 in)
Batting	Right-handed
Bowling	Right-arm off break
Role	All-rounder
International information
National side	Pakistan (2003–2021)
Test debut (cap 173)	20 August 2003 v Bangladesh
Last Test	3 December 2018 v New Zealand
ODI debut (cap 144)	3 April 2003 v Zimbabwe
Last ODI	5 July 2019 v Bangladesh
ODI shirt no.	8 (formerly 88)
T20I debut (cap 5)	1 September 2006 v England
Last T20I	11 November 2021 v Australia
T20I shirt no.	8
Domestic team information
Years	Team
2005–2011/12	Faisalabad Wolves
2008	Kolkata Knight Riders
2012/13–2015/16	Lahore Lions
2016–2018	Peshawar Zalmi
2017	St Kitts and Nevis Patriots
2019	Rajshahi Kings
2019–2022	Lahore Qalandars
2019	Edmonton Royals
2019	Middlesex
2019/20	Southern Punjab
2020/21	Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
2021	Galle Gladiators
2021	Muzaffarabad Tigers
2023	Quetta Gladiators
Career statistics
Competition Test ODI T20I FC Matches 55 218 119 210 Runs scored 3,652 6,614 2,514 12,169 Batting average 37.64 32.90 26.46 34.76 100s/50s 10/12 11/38 0/14 26/56 Top score 224 140* 99* 224 Balls bowled 4,067 7,733 1,261 14,992 Wickets 53 139 61 253 Bowling average 34.11 38.84 22.75 26.73 5 wickets in innings 0 0 0 7 10 wickets in match 0 0 0 2 Best bowling 4/16 4/41 4/10 8/57 Catches/stumpings 45/– 82/– 30/- 183/–
Source: ESPNcricinfo, 4 January 2022

Mohammad Hafeez (born 17 October 1980) is a famous Pakistani cricket coach and former player. He was a key member of the Pakistan team that won the 2017 ICC Champions Trophy. In the final match, he scored an amazing 57 runs without being out.

Hafeez retired from Test cricket in December 2018. He left the field to a special "guard of honour" from his teammates. On January 3, 2022, he announced his retirement from all international cricket. His career lasted over 18 years. People often call him "The Professor" because of his smart play.

He was the fourth international player to join the Caribbean Premier League. He was also the first Pakistani chosen for a Twenty20 tournament. Hafeez scored his highest Test score of 224 runs against Bangladesh in 2015.

In August 2018, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) gave him a special contract. In December 2018, he decided to retire from Test cricket. He wanted to focus on shorter games like One Day Internationals. Hafeez felt proud to have played 55 Test matches for Pakistan.

After the 2019 World Cup, he became a top T20 player. In 2020, he scored the most runs in T20 International cricket worldwide.

Personal Life

Mohammad Hafeez had to stop his studies for cricket. In 2023, at age 42, he went back to school. He joined the University of Karachi to study Health, Physical Education, and Sports Sciences.

International Cricket Journey

Starting Out: 2003–2006

Hafeez was one of the young players Pakistan hoped would improve their team. He played in Bhera and showed promise. However, his performance was not always steady at first. He was dropped from the team in late 2003.

After playing well in local games, he returned to the team in 2005. His bowling was good, even if his batting was not. In 2006, he scored his first century (100 runs) for Pakistan in Australia. He also scored 95 runs in a Test match in England. Later that year, he scored his second Test century in Karachi.

Coming Back Strong: 2010

Mohammad Hafeez bowling during a warm-up match in England, 2010.

In 2010, Hafeez was called back for the ICC World Twenty20. He did not score many runs then. But he later played well in One Day International (ODI) matches in England. He was the second-highest run-scorer for Pakistan.

Because of his good form, he played against South Africa in the UAE. He became an opening batsman in Test matches. He also played well in all 5 ODI matches. By the end of 2010, he was a regular player in all three types of cricket games.

Rising to the Top

On March 18, 2012, Hafeez scored 105 runs against India in Bangladesh. He and Nasir Jamshed made a huge partnership of 224 runs. This was Pakistan's best opening partnership against India in ODIs. During this game, he ran a lot, which gave him the nickname "the Snake of Sargodha."

He scored his fourth ODI century in March 2012. In June 2012, he made his highest Test score of 196 against Sri Lanka. In December 2012, he showed aggressive batting against India. He helped Pakistan win their first ODI series in India in seven years.

Hafeez had a fantastic series against Sri Lanka in December 2013. He scored three centuries in that ODI series. This made him only the second player to do so. He was supposed to play in the 2015 World Cup but got injured.

The ICC named him in the World ODI XI for his great play in 2014.

On December 20, 2020, he scored his best T20I score of 99 not out. This was against New Zealand. On July 31, 2021, he bowled his best T20I spell against West Indies. He gave away only 6 runs in 4 overs.

Leading the Team

Captaincy Role

In May 2012, Hafeez became the captain of Pakistan's T20 team. He was also the vice-captain for ODI and Test teams. Pakistan reached the semi-finals of the 2012 ICC World Twenty20 under his leadership.

As captain, he led Pakistan to wins against South Africa, West Indies, and Zimbabwe. He set records for most T20 wins as a Pakistani captain. Pakistan also moved up to second place in the rankings.

He was the first Pakistani captain to score three half-centuries in a row. He also became Pakistan's top run-scorer in T20s. After Pakistan left the T20 World Championship, Hafeez apologized and stepped down as captain.

After Captaincy: 2016-2021

In March 2016, Pakistan left the 2016 ICC World Twenty20 early. Hafeez was accused of not being honest about a knee injury. He was later dropped from the team for not being fit enough.

In 2017, Hafeez returned for the Australia tour. He captained Pakistan in one match and helped them win for the first time in 12 years in Australia. He also scored 72 runs and was named player of the match. Hafeez was a regular player when Pakistan won the Champions Trophy in 2017.

In April 2019, he was chosen for Pakistan's squad for the 2019 Cricket World Cup. He was the player of the match against England for his 84 runs. However, he was not consistent for the rest of the tournament.

In June 2020, he was named in the squad for Pakistan's tour to England. He tested positive for COVID-19 but then tested negative. In August 2020, Hafeez became the second Pakistani to score 2,000 runs in T20I cricket. In April 2021, he played his 100th T20I match.

In September 2021, he was part of Pakistan's squad for the 2021 ICC Men's T20 World Cup.

Playing for Different Teams

IPL Career

Mohammad Hafeez played for Kolkata Knight Riders in the first IPL season in 2008. He scored 64 runs and took 1 wicket. He did not play in the 2009 IPL due to political tensions.

PSL Career

Hafeez joined Peshawar Zalmi for the first PSL in 2016. He played for them for three years. In 2019, he moved to Lahore Qalanders and became their captain.

Bangladesh Premier League Career

In December 2015, he played for Dhaka Dynamites in the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL). In December 2018, Hafeez joined Rajshahi Kings for the sixth BPL season.

Other Leagues

Hafeez also played for Wayamba United in the 2012 Sri Lanka Premier League. He joined Melbourne Stars in Australia for the Big Bash League in 2014.

In 2018, he played for the Montreal Tigers in the Global T20 Canada tournament. He also played for Nangarhar in the Afghanistan Premier League. In 2019, he joined Edmonton Royals and Middlesex. In 2021, he played for Galle Gladiators in the 2021 Lanka Premier League. He also joined Delhi Bulls in the Abu Dhabi T10 league.

Bowling Action

In June 2015, Hafeez was stopped from bowling because of an illegal arm action. But he returned to play against Sri Lanka. He bowled well, taking 4 wickets and scoring a century. This earned him the player of the match award.

In November 2017, the ICC again suspended Hafeez for his bowling action. In December 2019, the ECB also banned him from bowling in the T20 Blast.

After Retirement

Coaching and Leadership

In November 2023, Mohammad Hafeez became the director of the Pakistan men's cricket team. He was also the temporary head coach for tours to Australia and New Zealand. His time as coach ended in February 2024.

Records and Achievements

Hafeez has scored 21 international centuries. He has 10 centuries in Test matches and 11 in One Day Internationals.

He scored his first Test century in his second match in 2003 against Bangladesh. His highest Test score is 224 runs. He achieved this against Bangladesh in 2015.

Test Centuries

No.	Runs	Match	Against	City/Country	Venue	Start date	Result	Ref.
1	102*	2	Bangladesh	Peshawar, Pakistan	Arbab Niaz Stadium	27 August 2003	Won
2	104	7	West Indies	Karachi, Pakistan	National Stadium	27 November 2006	Won
3	119	18	Zimbabwe	Bulawayo, Pakistan	Queens Sports Club	1 September 2011	Won
4	143	22	Bangladesh	Chittagong, Bangladesh	Zohur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium	9 December 2011	Won
5	196	27	Sri Lanka	Colombo, Sri Lanka	Sinhalese Sports Club Ground	30 June 2012	Drawn
6	101*	39	New Zealand	Abu Dhabi, UAE	Sheikh Zayed Stadium	9 November 2014	Won
7	197	40	New Zealand	Sharjah, UAE	Sharjah Cricket Association Stadium	26 November 2014	Lost
8	224	41	Bangladesh	Khulna, Bangladesh	Sheikh Abu Naser Stadium	28 April 2015	Drawn
9	151	47	England	Sharjah, UAE	Sharjah Cricket Association Stadium	1 November 2015	Won
10	126	51	Australia	Dubai, UAE	Dubai International Cricket Stadium	7 October 2018	Drawn

His first ODI century was against New Zealand in 2011. He scored 115 runs in that match. His highest ODI score is 140 not out, scored against Sri Lanka in 2013.

One Day International Centuries

No.	Runs	Match	Against	City/Country	Venue	Date	Result	Ref.
1	115	61	New Zealand	Christchurch, New Zealand	AMI Stadium	29 January 2011	Won
2	121	76	West Indies	Bridgetown, Barbados	Kensington Oval	2 May 2011	Lost
3	139*	81	Zimbabwe	Harare, Pakistan	Harare Sports Club	11 September 2011	Won
4	105	98	India	Dhaka, Bangladesh	Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium	18 March 2012	Lost
5	122*	117	Ireland	Dublin, Ireland	Clontarf Cricket Club Ground	23 May 2013	Tied
6	136*	123	Zimbabwe	Harare, Zimbabwe	Harare Sports Club	29 August 2013	Won
7	122	137	Sri Lanka	Sharjah, UAE	Sharjah Cricket Association Stadium	18 December 2013	Won
8	140*	139	Sri Lanka	Sharjah, UAE	Sharjah Cricket Association Stadium	22 December 2013	Won
9	113*	140	Sri Lanka	Abu Dhabi, UAE	Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium	25 December 2013	Won
10	103	162	Sri Lanka	Dambulla, Sri Lanka	Rangiri Dambulla International Stadium	11 July 2015	Won
11	102*	170	England	Abu Dhabi, UAE	Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium	11 November 2015	Won