5 interesting things to know about Fareed Ahmad Malik who dismissed Virat Kohli for a duck in 3rd IND vs AFG T20I
Fareed Ahmad Malik has set the M Chinnaswamy Stadium on fire with his dream spell in the third and final T20I match between India and Afghanistan. The left-arm fast bowler dismissed three Indian batters in as many overs while conceding just 10 runs.
Ahmad got his first opportunity in the series, and he justified his selection by dismissing Yashasvi Jaiswal in his second over. On the next ball, he sent Virat Kohli back to the dressing room before the batter could open his account. Soon after, he also bagged the wicket of Sanju Samson to leave India reeling at 22/4 in the fifth over.
In this listicle now, we will look at the five interesting things that fans should know about Afghanistan's new hero Fareed Ahmad Malik.
#1 Fareed Ahmad made his international debut in 2014
While Ahmad has come into the limelight tonight, the left-arm fast bowler made his international debut for Afghanistan almost a decade back in 2014. He has played 15 ODIs and 28 T20Is for his nation so far.
Ahmad has accounted for 21 wickets in 15 ODIs, while his T20I tally stands at 35 wickets. Surprisingly, he does not feature in Afghanistan's playing XI regularly.
#2 Fareed Ahmad won a silver medal at Asian Games 2023
Men's cricket returned to the Asian Games 2023 after a long hiatus last year. Left-arm fast bowler Ahmad was a member of the Afghanistan team, which won the silver medal.
He shone in Afghanistan's win against Pakistan in the semi-finals by scalping three wickets. He dismissed Rohail Nazir, Arafat Minhas, and Sufiyan Muqeem to finish with figures of 3/15 in three overs.
#3 Fareed Ahmad had an intense clash with Asif Ali in Asia Cup 2022
International matches between Pakistan and Afghanistan have entertained cricket fans a lot in recent times. One of the major reasons behind this is the passion that the players of the two teams bring to the field.
Back in Asia Cup 2022, Pakistan and Afghanistan had a nerve-wrecking encounter, where the Men in Green won by one wicket. During the game, Ahmad almost came to blows with Pakistan's finisher Asif Ali. Both players were fined 25 percent of their match fees for the altercation.
#4 Ahmad took a 7-wicket haul against Pakistan at U-19 level
It looks like Ahmad enjoys playing against Pakistan. Back in his U-19 days, the left-arm fast bowler bagged a seven-wicket haul to help Afghanistan U-19s defeat Pakistan U-19s by 214 runs in a 50-over contest.
The match happened in Lahore on January 24, 2014. Afghanistan U-19s scored 266/5 in 50 overs. In reply, Pakistan were bundled out for just 52 runs in 17.5 overs. Ahmad returned with figures of 7/21 in seven overs.
Current Pakistan stars Saud Shakeel and Imam-ul-Haq were among the seven batters dismissed by him.
#5 Fareed Ahmad is a big fan of Ahmad Wali Hotak
Many cricketers follow sports other than cricket, and Ahmad belongs to the same category. The left-arm fast bowler seems to be an MMA fan as he posted a special message for Afghan fighter Ahmad Wali Hotak after that latter won a match.
Ahmad doesn't shy away from praising his teammates as well. He regularly posts for Afghanistan players whenever someone performs well in a match.