14th August – Three feisty cricketers who celebrate their birthday
Three eminent cricketers who did well at the international stage are celebrating their birthdays on 14th August.
Pravin Amre
Amre represented India in 11 Tests and 37 ODIs. He had an impressive start to his international career in 1991 by scoring a half-century against South Africa on his ODI debut and then 103 against the same team on his Test debut next year. In 37 ODIs, Amre scored 513 runs including two half-centuries and in 11 Tests, he amassed 425 runs including the debut century.
Coached by Ramakant Achrekar, Amre trained with cricketers like Sachin Tendulkar and Vinod Kambli. After bidding adieu to his playing career, Amre took up coaching. He was the coach of India U19 side which won the 2012 World Cup. He also coached the Mumbai cricket team. In 2019, Amre was snapped up by Mumbai Indians as their talent scout after seeing his performance for Delhi Capitals.
Ramiz Raja
Regarded as one of the most entertaining commentators in the present era, Raja represented Pakistan in 57 Tests and 198 ODIs from 1984 to 1997. Ramiz played international cricket for 13 years, scoring 2833 runs in 57 Tests and 5841 runs in 198 ODIs.
Raja delivered an impressive performance in the 1992 World Cup, scoring two centuries in the showpiece event, playing a crucial role in Pakistan paving its way into the final. In the final against England, Raja clinched the final catch as the Men in Green lifted the coveted trophy. He bid adieu to all forms of cricket in 1997 and since, he has been active as a commentator.
Reeza Hendricks
Hendricks broke into the national squad in 2014. He made his T20I debut for the Proteas against Australia, four years before finally breaking into the ODI side in 2018. On his ODI debut against Sri Lanka, Hendricks became the third batsman for South Africa, and fourteenth overall, to score a century.
In 21 ODIs and 23 T20Is for the Proteas, the right-hander has scored 507 and 607 runs respectively, including an ODI ton. Hendricks is also associated with Highveld Lions and Jozi Stars.
