INTEZAR HUSSAI
The most prominent short story writer of Pakistan, Intezar Hussain is also, a novelist, colummist and playwright. Born in Bulent Shehar, UP, India, he wrote extensively about culture change and is noted for his highly expressive prose, his mastery in creating atmospher. His stories read like elegies on the fading culture of the Muslim nobility of Uttar Pradesh. intezar's novel, Basti, earned him a wide acclaim all over the world.
IMRAN KHAN
The achievements of Imran Khan, fast bowler, dependable batsman, peerless leader of men, stand alone. Strong of character, pound of his ancestry, determined to pull the rag-a-tag Pakistan team from their diffident attitude, Imran Khan changed the face of Pakistan cricket. He stood up to the tyranny of cricket officials, unashamedly backed the immense talent of his players, scathingly dismissed the authoritative and second hand treatment meted out by other cricket boards and the ICC and fashioned a new look Pakistan team in 1982. That team eventually became so battle hardened that Imran could lead them into the World Cup final in 1992 -- and win it. It was the pinnacle Pakistan cricket had been striving for and it was Imran, the leader and Imran the determined cricketer who made it possible. From a lanky, wayward 17 years old in 1971 he improved to become yhe first Pakistan bowler to go past the 30 wicket mark eventually finishing up with 364 Test wickets and scoring 3000 odd Test runs. The nation will
remember him for epic Test victories in Lord's (1982) 3-0 wins in series against Australia and India at home, Headingley (1987) Guyana (1988) and the World Cup 1992. Although the mantle of captaincy often overshadowed his genuine achievements on the cricket field, the true cricket fan still speaks with admiration of his dependable batting and the several viciously accurate bowling spells which, apart from winning matches, sparked the boom for the future growth of fast bowlers.
JINNAH, M.A.
Without Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah, there would have been no list of Pakistanis and no Pakistan to shape. Jinnah's own development to a point where he demanded a separate Muslim state is symbolic of the gradual disillusionment of hundreds of thousands other Muslim who initially wanted to remain a part of India. And once a decision had been made, the commitment to the cause and the means to achieve the target displayed a strength of character that was found wanting in his successors in politics. He left behind two traditions. The first entailed pursuingthe idea of a secular and just society in Pakistan-- as reflected in his much-quoted inaugural address to the constituent assembly of Pakistan. The second tradition was that of chaos-- which found a tragic manifestation in the circumstances of his death only a year after the creation of Pakistan. Ever since, the two strands have run parallel in the country's history.
JAHANGIR KHAN
Arguably the most successful squash player off all time, Jahangir Khan's success at the world circuit was phenomenal. His is a fairy tale story. As a child, Jahangir was so weak that his father Roshan thought he could never play squash. Later, as a teenager when Jahangir was struggling as a junior plater, his elder brother TorsamKhan died of a stroke during a match in Australia. That tragedy turned out to be the turning point in Jahangir's life. It was Torsam's most cherished dream that his younger sibling should succeed where he had failed -- become the world champion. Jahangir devoted his life to achieving that goal. Within a few seasons after Torsam's death as the best player in thr world. He went on to win the British Open for a record ten times (surpassing Hashim and Geoff Hunt's records). He won six World Open titles and all the other major events of the World Tour in the eighties and early nineties. However, jahangir's most unique record was his five-and-a-half year unbeaten run when he won over 500
matches at a strech. He could have a achieved even more had a nagging back injury not forced him to retire in 1993. But by that time, he had done enough to get his name installed in the record books amd the hearts of millions of squash fans all over the world.
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