20 Interesting facts about Yusuf Pathan – The Power Hitter

There was a time when the Pathan brothers awe-inspired an entire generation of young cricketers with the senior Pathan, Yusuf, being the more attacking one. While Irfan Pathan focused on troubling the batsmen with his immaculate swing bowling, Yusuf had a brash and brutal attitude towards the bowlers. He was known for his raw power hitting abilities and indeed he did pack a serious punch on his days!

Here is a little journey into the life of this modern day smacker of the cricket ball:

1. Early days:

Yusuf Pathan was born in the Pathan family, who are of Pashtun (Pathan) ancestry, in Gujarat on 17 November 1982. His father, Mehmood Khan Pathan, served as the muezzin. Albeit their parents wanted them to become Islamic scholars, Yusuf Pathan and his brother took interest in cricket.

2. The trainings:

Success never comes easy. Yusuf Pathan is an example for the same. He attended 6 hours of rigorous training each day and then was trained under the guidance of former Indian captain Datta Gaekwad. He made his first-class debut in the 2001-2002 season.

3. Career:

Yusuf Pathan’s younger brother, Irfan, took giant strides and had made it to the national side and even had a hat-trick under his name. Yusuf Pathan, however, progressed steadily and slowly. Yusuf Pathan impressed the selectors with his stellar performances in the 2007 Deodhar Trophy owing to which he broke into the Indian team for the inaugural T20 World Cup in 2007. Yusuf Pathan made his ODI debut for India against Pakistan at Dhaka on 10 June 2008. Yusuf Pathan is yet to earn himself a Test cap.

4. An unnoticed debut:

Not many people noticed but Yusuf Pathan made his T20I debut in the finals of World T20 in 2007 against Pakistan. He scored 15 runs and struck a massive six.

5. The Pathans clinched the victory:

In 2009, in a T20I against Sri Lanka, India were staring at a defeat when the Pathan brothers joined hands to clinch a memorable victory. India were set a challenging 172 for victory, and India were reeling at 115-7 but then came a 59-run partnership off 25 balls between Yusuf and Irfan which saw India home with four balls to spare.

6. Fastest IPL century:

Yusuf Pathan was at the peak of his form during the inaugural edition of the IPL. Yusuf Pathan scored a century off just 37 balls for Rajasthan Royals against Mumbai Indians. Yusuf Pathan held the record for the fastest century before Chris Gayle stormed his record with a 30-ball century four years later.

7. 22-ball 72-run knock:

In the 2014 edition of the IPL, Pathan was at his best again. Yusuf Pathan struck 72 runs off 22 balls for Kolkata Knight Riders in a crunch came against Sunrisers Hyderabad to steer his side to a win. KKR went on to win the IPL that year. He had struck a 15-ball fifty on the way which is, till date, the joint second-fastest half-century in the IPL.

8. Fastest 50 in Ranji Trophy:

In Ranji Trophy, Yusuf Pathan held the record of fastest 50 (in 18 balls) up to the 2015 season. His record was broken by Bandeep Singh who scored a half-century in 15 balls.

9. Fastest century by an Indian in List A Cricket:

In the Vijay Hazare Trophy match in 2010 between Baroda and Maharashtra, Yusuf played a blistering knock of 108 runs off 42 balls. He raced to a three-figure mark in only 40 balls creating a milestone for the fastest hundred by an Indian in List-A cricket. The record stands even now.

10. The weird dismissal:

Yusuf Pathan was involved in a controversial dismissal too. On 15 May 2013, Yusuf Pathan became the first batsman to be given out for obstructing the field in T20 cricket while playing for the Kolkata Knight Riders in IPL 2013 against Pune Warriors India.

11. Slapgate:

Yusuf Pathan slapped a fan during Ranji Trophy match between Baroda and Jammu & Kashmir in 2014 for passing indecent comments. Yusuf Pathan faced a match ban for this altercation with the jeering spectator.

12. Ton vs South Africa:

In the ODI series against South Africa, before the 2011 World Cup, he gave a stand-out performance in a match in Pretoria where he scored a brilliant 105 in 70 deliveries (comprising 8 fours and 8 sixes). Even though India lost the match, his performance was complimented heavily. He scored the century in 68 balls, which was second fastest by an Indian outside the subcontinent.

13. Second-best ODI strike-rate for an Indian

Yusuf Pathan’s ODI strike-rate of 113.60 is the second-highest for an Indian with a minimum of 500 runs in the format. He is only behind Hardik Panday (115.43) in this aspect.

14. Innings against New Zealand:

Yusuf Pathan scored his maiden ton against New Zealand in 2010 at Chinaswamy Stadium, Bangalore. Yusuf Pathan scored 123 off 96 balls and gave India a 4-0 lead in the series.

15. Highest successful run chase in first-class history:

In the final of the Duleep Trophy 2010, Pathan scored 108 in the first innings and 210* in 190 balls in the second and led his team West Zone to a three-wicket win over South Zone. This became a world record for the highest successful run chase in first-class cricket history.

16. Love life:

Yusuf Pathan married Afreen on 27 March 2013. His wife, Afreen, is a physiotherapist by profession.

17. The junior Pathan:

Yusuf Pathan and wife Afreen had their first child on 17 April 2014. He became a proud dad of a baby boy.

18. Cricket Academy of Pathans:

Yusuf and Irfan recently launched their dream venture, Cricket Academy of Pathans, which functions in their home town Baroda.

19. Love of the fans:

According to the sources, Yusuf Pathan featured in the triangular series in Nairobi-Kenya and played for Baroda’s team against Gujarat and Kenya international where he was honored by a local fan who quoted “Yusuf the number one player in cricket after the great Sachin Tendulkar.”

20. Retirement

On February 26, 2021, Yusuf Pathan brought the curtains down on his career calling it quits from all forms of the game. However, he has cleared that he will play in the foreign T10 and T20 leagues if the opportunity beckons.