Who is Hassan Khan? 5 interesting facts about the San Francisco Unicorns all-rounder who starred in MLC 2024 clash vs MI New York
The 16th match of Major League Cricket (MLC) 2024 pitted the San Francisco Unicorns against MI New York on Thursday, July 18. After being asked to bat first, the Unicorns lost some early wickets and were 33/5 after seven overs.
Then, Hassan Khan (44 off 35 balls) and captain Corey Anderson (59* off 37 balls) stitched together an 87-run partnership for the sixth wicket in 58 balls as San Francisco finished 148/7 in their 20 overs.
In response, Dewald Brevis fought hard (56 off 36 balls), but MI New York fell short by three runs in the end. MI New York needed 20 off the last over of Haris Rauf; Heath Richards hit two sixes as the game became intense.
Then it all came down to the last ball, with four runs needed. Rauf held his nerves as Richards was trapped in front of the stumps as the Unicorns won a thriller of a game. Matthew Short took three wickets for San Francisco.
After the game, Hassan Khan has come into the limelight for his brilliant all-round performance. The right-handed batter scored 44 runs and bowled two important overs. He only gave away nine runs and took the wicket of Monank Patel.
On that note, in this article, we will look at five interesting facts about the San Francisco Unicorns player.
#1 Hassan Khan was part of Pakistan’s Under-19 team in the 2016 World Cup
Hassan Khan was in Pakistan’s Under-19 team for the 2016 World Cup. Shadab Khan was also part of the team. The left-arm spinner took five wickets in the tournament as Pakistan crashed out of the tournament after losing the quarterfinal match against the West Indies.
He didn’t get much opportunity with the bat and scored 19 runs in three innings.
#2 Khan made his List-A debut in 2016 for Sindh
Hassan made his List-A debut in the third match of the Pakistan Cup in April 2016. Centuries from Khurram Manzoor (100) and Sami Aslam (108) helped Sindh put up 266 runs on the board in 45 overs.
Balochistan had to score 229 runs in 31 overs, as per DLS. Captain Azhar Ali scored a brilliant century (100* off 83 balls) but received no support from the other end as Balochistan lost the match by 42 runs. Hassan Khan bowled seven overs in the game, conceded 38 runs, and picked up one wicket.
#3 Made his PSL debut for Quetta Gladiators in 2017
The second match of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) 2017 edition pitted the Quetta Gladiators against the Lahore Qalandars. After being asked to bat first, Rilee Rossouw scored 60 runs off 47 balls for the Gladiators.
Hassan, who was making his debut, scored 16 off 11 balls as Quetta finished 136/9 in their allotted 20 overs. Left-arm pacer Mohammad Irfan took three wickets for Lahore.
In response, Lahore Qalandars kept losing wickets at regular intervals as no player was able to play big innings. Zulfiqar Babar, Mohammad Nawaz, and Hassan Khan bagged two wickets each as the Quetta Gladiators won the match by eight runs. Hassan Khan was given the Player of the Match award for his all-round performance.
#4 Hassan was the captain of Pakistan’s Under-19 team for the 2018 World Cup
Hassan Khan was the captain of Pakistan’s Under-19 team for the 2018 World Cup. He previously played as a player in the 2016 edition. In five matches, Hassan took seven wickets and scored 79 runs. Pakistan was beaten by India in the semi-final match by 203 runs.
#5 He made his MLC debut against Los Angeles Knight Riders
Khan made his MLC debut in the fourth match of the 2024 season on July 7 against the Los Angeles Knight Riders. He didn’t get to bowl in his debut match as the Knight Riders scored 165 runs, batting first.
In response, half-centuries from Finn Allen (63) and Matthew Short (58) helped the San Francisco Unicorns win the game by seven wickets with 28 balls remaining. Hassan Khan remained unbeaten on two of four balls.