Sikandar Raza

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Sikandar Raza is a Pakistan-born Zimbabwean cricketer.He developed an interest in cricket through his father and uncles, who once wanted to represent Pakistan in cricket.While he was in school, he wanted to become a fighter pilot. He was selected from 10,000 students to study at the Pakistan Air Force boarding school. However, he failed the Lens Opacity test in the final medical round.In 2002, he, along with his family, moved to Zimbabwe from Pakistan and there he started playing cricket at the amateur level. He gained so much popularity at the amateur level that the selectors of the Zimbabwe cricket team approached him to play for Zimbabwe’s national cricket team. However, he was of Pakistani nationality which was becoming a hindrance in his selection. So, in 2011, the Zimbabwe Government allotted him their citizenship. Sikandar Raza with his team members.He has played in various cricket leagues such as Afghanistan Premier League, Bangladesh Premier League, Caribbean Premier League, and Pakistan Premier League.In July 2014, Raza, along with Hamilton Masakzada, made a record for the highest opening partnership with 224 runs for Zimbabwe against Afghanistan at Queens Sports Club Ground, Bulawayo, Zimbabwe. Out of 224 runs, 141 runs were scored by Raza. He also made the record for the highest run scored by a Zimbabwean player in an ODI match. Sikandar Raza in a test match.Raza has represented Zimbabwe against various countries like Pakistan, Bangladesh, New Zealand, West Indies, South Africa, Afghanistan, and Sri Lanka.In 2017, he came into the limelight with the ODI series in which the Zimbabwe team won the series by 3-2 against Sri Lanka. Raza scored 27 (not out) and took 3 wickets for 21 runs in the last match of the series.In 2018, he received the Player of the Tournament award for scoring 319 runs and taking 15 wickets in the ODI World Cup Qualifiers. He completed his 100 ODI matches in March 2020. Sikandar Raza in an ODI match.In April 2021, he started experiencing severe pain in his right arm which went worse with the passage of time. The doctors said that he had an infection in the bone marrow. Later, it was rumoured that he had cancer. However, the rumours turned out to be false.