All-rounder Sikandar Raza is undoubtedly one of the greatest talents Zimbabwe has ever produced. Since making his debut in 2013, Raza has played 17 Tests, 142 ODIs and 91 T20Is and has delivered many memorable performances. Not just in international cricket, Raza has also contributed extensively in domestic leagues like the Indian Premier League (IPL) and Pakistan Super League (PSL). Talking about his personal life, the 38-year-old versatile player was born in Sialkot, Pakistan and was recently asked on social media what he thinks about playing for the country of his birth.
On X (formerly Twitter), a fan asked Raza: “Have you ever thought about playing for Pakistan? You could help solve the middle-order batting problems.”
In response, Raza maintained his loyalty to Zimbabwe Cricket and stated that he will try to “repay the faith” shown to him by the management.
“I will only and always represent Zimbabwe. (Zimbabwe) spent time and money on me and I am just trying to repay their faith and whatever I get will never come close to repaying them. Zim is mine and I am completely theirs,” Raza said .
I was born Pakistani and am a product of Zimbabwean cricket
I will only and always represent Zimbabwe
I spent time and money on myself and I’m just trying to repay their faith and whatever I get will never come close to repaying
Zim is mine and I am completely theirs https://t.co/Jod5vEXmuM
– Sikandar Raza (@SRazaB24) August 3, 2024
In another post, a fan asked Raza to name his favorite bowler and batsman. Surprisingly, Raza named a few players, which included Indian pacer Jasprit Bumrah, Pakistani star Shaheen Afridi and former West Indies all-rounder Sunil Narine.
Players:
Narine, Bumrah and ShaheenBeaters:
Abdullah Shafiq, Craig Ervine and Rohit https://t.co/A3mJyhsXSv– Sikandar Raza (@SRazaB24) August 3, 2024
In a recently concluded five-match T20I series against India, Raza was named captain of Zimbabwe. Despite leading 1-0, Zimbabwe ended up losing the series 4-1.
Talking about general statistics, Raza scored 1,187 runs and scalped 34 wickets in 17 Test matches. In ODIs, he scored 4,154 runs, while in T20Is, he recorded 2,037 runs in 91 games.
Furthermore, Raza played nine IPL matches for Punjab Kings where he scored 182 runs and also scalped three wickets.
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This story originally appeared on ndtv.com read the full story