We examine the progress of the Pakistan U19 players who took part in the memorable World Cup final victory against India in 2006

By Saj Sadiq (18th Feb, 2014)

19th February 2006, Pakistan under 19s beat their Indian counterparts by 38 runs in a low scoring final in Colombo.

Pakistan scored 109 and then bundled out the Indians for only 71.

Let's see how the Pakistani starting line-up that day have done :-

Nasir Jamshed - 63 performances in total for Pakistan. A regular pick in the limited overs side in the last couple of years until recently when he has been horribly out of form. A powerful batsman, nasir has unfortunately of late picked up the bad habit of getting himself out, rather than the bowlers getting him out. Fitness issues continue to dog his career whgilst some have questioned the left handers attitude. Nasir at the moment once again finds himself looking in from the outside as far as international cricket is concerned.


Ali Khan - 140 appearances in domestic cricket. A regular pick for Sialkot in the T20 format and for KRL, Ali is yet to make the breakthrough into international cricket although his clean striking of the ball and medium pace bowling has impressed at times.


Mohammad Ibrahim - Only 19 first class appearances and nothing since 2012. Ibrahim seems to have been lost to the wilderness that is known as Pakistani domestic cricket.


Rameez Raja jr - A stylish batsman Rameez has played twice for Pakistan, both times in the twenty over format after a successful domestic T20 tournament in 2011. Rameez's form of late though hasn't been as good as he would have hoped in all formats, although he remains a regular pick for State Bank Limited in domestic cricket. One not to be completely discarded though and Rameez has the potential and skill level to return to international cricket.


Ali Asad - The Karachi born batsman hasn't set the world alight with his batting in domestic cricket after being earmarked as one for the future. Ali averages 34 in first class cricket and is a regular pick for United Bank


Riaz Kail - Hailing from Peshawar, Riaz has been a regular pick for Abbottabad in all formats. However he is another of the class of 2006 who has failed to succeed at the highest level with either bat or ball.


Sarfraz Ahmed - The captain of the 2006 world cup winning squad. Sarfraz has played 36 times for Pakistan although some would argue that he should have played many more times. Sarfraz has finally recently shown his pedigree in international cricket with the bat when he made 48 and 74 against Sri Lanka in the UAE. A natural with the gloves and an improving batsman, Sarfraz is expected to feature for Pakistan in years to come although he faces stiff competition from the Akmal brothers.


Anwar Ali - The booming inswingers and pace may have deserted him but Anwar Ali has been a consistent performer in domestic cricket. His reward for his consistency has been to play for Pakistan 8 times, although it's only recently that he has shown his pedigree at international level. Ali whose actioned has been changed by coaches at the NCA was recently named in the Pakistan squad for the Asia Cup. His lower order hitting ability is a valuable asset for Pakistan, as well as his ability to be one of Pakistan's better outfielders.


Imad Wasim - All rounder Imad has been a regular player in domestic cricket for Islamabad in various formats. Imad though hasn't managed to make the step up to international cricket despite some good performances in the last couple of seasons in domestic cricket.


Akhtar Ayub - The wholehearted pace bowler from Attock has failed to live up to expectations after a very good performance at the Under 19 world cup of 2006. Ayub for a couple of seasons was nowhere to be seen, although he has recently been selected for Rawalpindi in various formats. Another of the class of 2006 who will be disappointed with the way his career has developed.


Jamshed Ahmed - Probably the saddest story amongst the class of 2006. Jamshed was expected to be a star of the future after impressing at the World Cup in Sri Lanka. However after signing for PIA, Jamshed's career has been a stop-start affair. Dubious selection policies at PIA have meant that Jamshed has only played 21 First class matches, despite some very good performances. Jamshed is once again trying to re-launch his cricket career at PIA and was selected for a few matches this season.

Discuss!