Ajmal Shahzad

Ajmal Shahzad is a retired cricket player, currently acting as a cricket coach. During his playing career he was best known for being a right-arm fast bowler and spent his time playing for Yorkshire, Nottinghamshire, Sussex, Lancashire and Leicestershire cricket teams. Ajmal also represented England internationally playing three Twenty20 internationals, one test match and 11 One Day Internationals during his time with the team.

Ajmal began his cricket career in 2004 when he became the first person of Asian extraction to play for the Yorkshire cricket team. Ajmal made his first-class appearance in 2006, scoring two runs. The shorter format of the game was where he really thrived, playing in four List A matches claiming five wickets and 18 runs. Later in 2009, Ajmal competed in the lower middle order, where he delivered an impeccable performance taking 40 wickets and scoring 445 runs. This impeccable performance earnt him the approval of the England performance squad, and he earnt himself a call up to the team. He played with the team on a tour of South Africa, considerably impressing the coach of the team.

2011 brought Ajmal’s next significant game, getting the chance to play in the 2011 Country Championships. A year later in 2012, Ajmal announced that he would be leaving Yorkshire to join Lancashire cricket team on loan. After a short period of time, he completely left Yorkshire cricket team and joined the Nottinghamshire cricket team, signing a three-year contract.

Alongside playing for Yorkshire, Ajmal also had the chance to represent his country on the England national team. In 2010 he was given the opportunity to be part of the team on the Test and ODI squads for the England tour of Bangladesh. At the Twenty20 International against Pakistan, Ajmal made his debut for the team claiming two wickets during the game. He made his ODI debut in a match against Bangladesh, again claiming a wicket in the first over.

He made his Test debut in the Bangladesh tour of England, replacing an injured player and scoring five runs. Later when Pakistan toured England he was included in the squad for the first Test, but unfortunately injured himself whilst still playing for Yorkshire and was unable to compete. After returning from injury he played in two Twenty20 Internationals against Australia and five One Day Internationals. Ajmal was also given the chance to play in the 2011 ICC World Cup, making two appearances before a hamstring injury stopped him from playing. After this injury, Ajmal retired from international rugby.

After retiring from playing cricket Ajmal joined the Marylebone Cricket Club as head coach and has since gone on to claim the title of ECB’s Performance Coach of the Year Award. Given his experience of both playing and coaching the sport, Ajmal is the perfect candidate for a cricket speaker at your next event. With a plethora of personal experiences and anecdotes to share, Ajmal is sure to entertain any audience