Misbah-ul-Haq

Misbah-ul-Haq PP SI (born 28 May 1974) is a former Pakistani cricket coach and former international cricketer.

Misbah captained Pakistan in all formats and is former head coach and former chief selector of the Pakistan national team.

Misbah would eventually make his first-class debut in 1998, aged 24 for Sargodha.

Misbah went on to be selected for the Pakistani Test side in 2001 and the ODI cricket team in 2002.

Although making his international debut back in 2001, his breakthrough came when he was selected for ICC World T20.

Misbah married Uzma Khan in 2004.

The couple have two children, including his son Faham-ul-Haq who's also a cricketer.

Misbah had not only gained success at international level but also at domestic level.

Misbah played in 2008 Indian Premier League Season 1 for Royal Challengers Bangalore while he played in Sri Lanka Premier League for Kandurata Warriors in 2012.

Misbah was a member of the team that won the 2009 ICC World Twenty20, two years after the defeat from the final in the previous tournament.

A late bloomer, Misbah was a middle-order batsman best known for his composure with the bat whilst also having the ability to be an aggressive big shot player when required.

Misbah scored the fastest fifty in Test cricket and set a new record for the fastest Test hundred and holds the record for most career ODI runs without a century.

Misbah has an MBA degree in Human Resource Management from the University of Management and Technology in Lahore, Punjab.

He is the 10th highest scorer in the league.

He led Islamabad United to be the first champions of Pakistan Super League, and again was captain of the Islamabad United when the team won the third edition of PSL.

Misbah also enjoys the highest success percentage as captain in Pakistan Super League matches up till now.

As captain, he led Pakistan to being the champions of the 2012 Asia Cup.

His 2012–13 domestic season was memorable.

He captained Faisalabad Wolves in Twenty20 domestic tournament and SNGPL in First-class and List-A domestic tournament.

First, he took SNGPL to victory in President's Trophy against Younus Khan's HBL and then Faisalabad Wolves to victory in Faysal Bank Super 8 against Shoaib Malik's Sialkot Stallions in final surprisingly.

Though Faisalabad Wolves lost final earlier in Faysal Bank T20 Cup against Mohammad Hafeez's Lahore Lions but they took their revenge in Super 8 tournament in semi-final and eventually winning the tournament and more importantly qualifying for the Champions League T20.

And at last Misbah led SNGPL to another victory in domestic list-A tournament, President's Cup against Rana Naved-ul-Hasan's WAPDA in final.

Misbah won all domestic tournaments (Twenty20, first-class and list-A) in domestic season 2012/13.

And he also represented St Lucia Zouks in 2013 season in Caribbean Premier League.

He also played for Abhani in Bangladesh.

Misbah revealed that he had been offered a two-year contract by Worcestershire County Cricket Club to play in the English County Championship from 2013 onwards, but declined due to clashes with his international commitments.

After announcing retirement from limited overs cricket in 2015, Misbah continued to play Test cricket for a few years.

In 2015, Misbah signed by Rangpur Riders to play in the third edition of the Bangladesh Premier League.

He made the decision to play in order to remain match fit for the upcoming Test Series with England in July 2016.

In only his first game for Rangpur Riders, Misbah scored 61 runs, smashing 4 sixes and winning his team the game by chasing a mammoth total of 187.

He was awarded the Man of the Match award for the performances.

Misbah signed by Islamabad United for a price of $140,000 to be played in February 2016 for Pakistan Super League.

On 4 April 2017, Misbah announced his retirement from all international cricket as well after the conclusion of West Indies tour.

Misbah retired from all formats of international cricket on 14 May 2017.

Misbah grew up in Mianwali in Pakistan Punjab.

His father, Abdul Qudoos Niazi, was a school principal who died during Misbah's childhood.

Misbah is part of the Pashtun Niazi family; the Pakistan cricketer and former Prime Minister of Pakistan Imran Khan is his distant cousin.

During his early days, Misbah played tape ball cricket for his hometown, but his parents insisted on him securing a good education and he completed a BSc in Faisalabad.

He then enrolled in the University of Management and Technology to pursue an MBA degree.

In 2019 against the Lahore Qalandars, he became the oldest player in all of t20 cricket to score a 50.