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Watch: Shoaib Akhtar lookalike in Oman cricket league takes the internet by storm
In a viral video, Pakistan-born Muhammad Imran is seen emulating the former pacer’s bowling style
A video of a player in an Oman cricket league, who bears an uncanny resemblance to Pakistani cricket legend Shoaib Akhtar, has caught the attention of social media. Muhammad Imran not only has a hairstyle similar to Akhtar’s younger days but he even has a bowling action that resembles the “Rawalpindi Express”.
In the video of Muhammad Imran, shared on X, formerly Twitter, the 29-year-old is seen emulating the former Pakistani cricketer’s bowling style.
According to ARY News, the video is from an Oman D20 League match between Azaiba XI and Bousher Busters. Imran is currently playing for a domestic club named Oman White.
Imran has played a total of 33 first-class games taking 51 wickets and scoring 1,266 runs. He has also played 45 T20s where he picked 32 wickets and scored 409 runs, according to The Free Press Journal.
Speaking to The Indian Express, Imran, who hails from a village in Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, said he grew up watching “Shoaib bhai” and that everyone in his village used would try to bowl like the legendary pacer. “But only I was able to perfect it,” Imran added.
It was during a tournament in the Dera Ismail Khan district that some told Imran about his bowling action being similar to that of Akhtar.
Determined to make a career in cricket, Imran left his house and reached Karachi. “My father wanted me to join the army. I wanted to play cricket. So, I ran away from my village. I didn’t tell anyone, everyone was sleeping when I left for Karachi,” Imran was quoted as saying.
The aspiring cricketer then gave his trials and impressed everyone with his actions and was later picked for Karachi U-19s.
In 2019, a friend of Imran posted a video of his bowling action after which he was contacted by a T20 franchise in Oman.
Imran said the franchise arranged a passport for him after which he went to Oman. There he played cricket and also installed CCTV cameras to make a living, according to The Indian Express report.
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