Mumtaz Habib is an Afghan former

cricketer Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by striki ...

who played for

Durham MCC University Durham MCC University (previously known as Durham University Centre of Cricketing Excellence) is a cricket coaching centre based at Durham University in Durham, County Durham, England, and the name under which the university's cricket team plays. ...

between 2006 and 2008. Habib was a right-handed batsman who bowled right-arm medium-fast. He was born in Kabul, Afghanistan and has spent his early in Quetta, Pakistan before moving to the United Kingdom.

Early life

Habib's parents paid for him to smuggled out of Afghanistan in 2000 after the Taliban tried to force him to join their militia. His father, Habib Khan, had served King Zahir Shah. He was sent to Britain, along with his younger brother, where they lived with their sister in

Harrow Harrow may refer to: Places * Harrow, Victoria, Australia * Harrow, Ontario, Canada * The Harrow, County Wexford, a village in Ireland * London Borough of Harrow, England ** Harrow, London, a town in London ** Harrow (UK Parliament constituency) ...

. He was initially educated at Rooks Heath College, where he learned to speak English, studied well and was made deputy head boy. His cricketing skills caught the eye of Harrow's cricket master when he was practising at an indoor cricket centre owned by

Harrow School (The Faithful Dispensation of the Gifts of God) , established = (Royal Charter) , closed = , type = Public schoolIndependent schoolBoarding school , religion = Church of E ...

. Habib was then asked to practice with the Harrow schoolboys and eventually he was offered a full bursary to cover the school's then fees of £20,985 a year. Passing nine

GCSE The General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) is an academic qualification in a particular subject, taken in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland. State schools in Scotland use the Scottish Qualifications Certificate instead. Private sc ...

s just two years after learning English, he was later educated at

Durham University , mottoeng = Her foundations are upon the holy hills (Psalm 87:1) , established = (university status) , type = Public , academic_staff = 1,830 (2020) , administrative_staff = 2,640 (2018/19) , chancellor = Sir Thomas Allen , vice_chan ...

First-class cricket

He made his first-class debut in England for

Durham UCCE Durham MCC University (previously known as Durham University Centre of Cricketing Excellence) is a cricket coaching centre based at Durham University in Durham, County Durham, England, and the name under which the university's cricket team plays ...

against Nottinghamshire, making him the first Afghan to play first-class cricket in England, and the second Afghan born cricketer after

Salim Durani Salim Aziz Durani (born 11 December 1934) is a former Indian cricketer who played in 29 Test matches from 1960 to 1973. An all-rounder, Durani was a slow left-arm orthodox bowler and a left-handed batsman famous for his six-hitting prowess. He ...

to play first-class cricket. His second first-class match came in the same season against Lancashire. He played his third and final first-class match in 2008 against Lancashire. In his 3 first-class matches, he scored 20 runs at a batting average of 6.66, with a high score of 10. In the field he took a single

catch Catch may refer to: In sports * Catch (game), children's game * Catch (baseball), a maneuver in baseball * Catch (cricket), a mode of dismissal in cricket * Catch or reception (gridiron football) * Catch, part of a rowing stroke In music * Catc ...

. With the ball he took 4 wickets at a

bowling average In cricket, a player's bowling average is the number of runs they have conceded per wicket taken. The lower the bowling average is, the better the bowler is performing. It is one of a number of statistics used to compare bowlers, commonly use ...

of 58.52, with best figures of 3/92.

References

External links

Mumtaz Habib
at ESPNcricinfo
Mumtaz Habib
at CricketArchive {{DEFAULTSORT:Habib, Mumtaz 1987 births Living people Cricketers from Kabul People educated at Harrow School Alumni of Durham University Afghan cricketers Durham MCCU cricketers Afghan refugees