OTD| Star India player Yusuf Pathan was born in 1982

 Former Indian cricketer Yusuf Pathan is celebrating his 41st birthday. Pathan was always recognized for his destructive batting style. He was a member of the 2011 World Cup-winning side. Apart from international career, he had an illustrious IPL career where he won multiple titles with Kolkata Knight Riders and Rajasthan Royals.

The Beginning

Yusuf Pathan got his maiden national call-up in 2007. He was included in the squad for the 2007 T20 World Cup which had a core of young players. He did not get to play in the tournament before the all-important final. Virender Sehwag got injured before the final resulting in Pathan making his international debut against Pakistan in the final.

The next year he made his ODI debut against the same opponent, Pakistan, at Mirpur and went on to become an important part of the Indian setup. He also played in the 2011 World Cup where India emerged victorious. 

The Overview

Yusuf Pathan represented India in 57 One-Day internationals and 22 T20 internationals. In the ODI format, he scored 810 runs at an average of 27. He scored his career-best figure of 123* against New Zealand. Whereas, in the shortest format he managed to score 236 runs. 

Pathan had an illustrious IPL career. He played 174 matches for various franchises. In the very first season, he proved to be an asset for Rajasthan Royals as he made crucial contributions in the glorious campaign in 2008. He scored 435 runs in the inaugural IPL season. 

He was also a crucial member of the Gautam Gambhir-led Kolkata Knight Riders. He played the role of a destructor in the middle order for Kolkata Knight Riders. He was instrumental in guiding KKR to IPL titles in 2012 and 2014. With a blistering knock against Sunrisers Hyderabad in 2014 he made sure that his team finished in the top 2 giving them an extra match to qualify for the final.