Who Is Kamran Ghulam? All You Need To Know About Babar Azam’s Replacement

Kamran Ghulam to replace Babar Azam for England Test [Source: @KamranGhulam7/x]Kamran Ghulam to replace Babar Azam for England Test [Source: @KamranGhulam7/x]

Kamran Ghulam is poised to make his Test debut through the upcoming second match of Pakistan's home series against England in October. A day prior to the launch of the second Test in Multan, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) took to social media and unveiled Pakistan's playing XI for their must-win match.

Notably, Kamran Ghulam was called in as a replacement for struggling top-order batter Babar Azam, who has yet to make a single international century in over a year. Celebrating Ghulam's maiden Test cap, here we take a look at everything you need to know about the 29-year-old all-rounder.

Kamran Ghulam: The journey to Test debut

Kamran Ghulam made his domestic cricket debut in Pakistan for Abbottabad Falcons with a List A game during the 2013 Faysal Bank One Day Cup back in March 2013. Aged 17 at the time, the then youngster celebrated the occasion by picking up two match-winning wickets against Peshawar Panthers.

Later that same year, Kamran Ghulam made his first-class debut for Abbottabad in Karachi. A few months later, the cricketer toured the United Arab Emirates (UAE) as part of Pakistan's Under-19 team for the 2014 U19 Cricket World Cup. Glittering his team with his all-round presence on the field, the 'Boys in Green' reached the finals, only to concede the title to South Africa.

Ghulam enjoyed a couple of prolific domestic seasons for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and in 2020-21, became the first cricketer to score over 1,000 runs in a single Qaid-e-Azam Trophy season.

He also holds a decorated career in PSL cricket, having lifted the title thrice since making his tournament debut. Back in 2016, Kamran Ghulam was part of a victorious Islamabad United group, and the all-rounder also won successive titles as part of Shaheen Afridi's Lahore Qalandars in 2022 and 2023.

The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa-born player finally received his maiden international cap through an ODI appearance against New Zealand in January 2023 at Karachi. However, he did so as a concussion substitute for Haris Sohail during the match's second half.

After toiling away in domestic cricket for nearly a decade, with 59 first-class caps, Kamran Ghulam is now poised to make his hard-earned Test debut as Pakistan aims for some English redemption after Multan drubbing.

The Multan Cricket Stadium will also host the second Test of the three-match series between Pakistan and England, between October 15 and October 19.