SRH bowler Rashid Khan in action during IPL-2018 Qualifier-2 Match against KKR at Eden Garden in Kolkata on Friday. PTI Kolkata: When he packed his bags and boarded the flight to India to play in the 11th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL), Rashid Khan wouldn't have thought of becoming such a sensation among the cricket fans around the world.
As Sunrisers Hyderabad marched into the final of IPL beating Kolkata Knight Riders in the second qualifier in Kolkata on Friday, cricket fans and punditswere all praise for Rashid's all-round heroics.
The teenager provided the late fireworks with the bat and then returned with the ball to curtail Kolkata Knight Riders' chase and guide his team to a 14-run win and a place in Sunday's final against Chennai Super Kings.
Rashid's match-winning performance included an unbeaten 34-run cameo off just 10 deliveries (including four sixes and two fours) and a fantastic bowling effort which resulted in figures of 3/19 from four overs.
After Rashid's match-winning performance, many Indian fans took to Titter, tagging external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj, demanding Indian citizenship for him.
However, the minister, who is active on social media, soon responded by saying that she had gone through all the reactions on social media but the matter of awarding an Indian citizenship to a foreign resident rested with the Ministry of Home Affairs.
But, it did not end there. On Saturday, Afghan president Ashraf Ghani himself acknowledged the fan frenzy and applauded the poster boy of Afghan cricket.
"Afghans take absolute pride in our hero, Rashid Khan. I am also thankful to our Indian friends for giving our players a platform to show their skills. Rashid reminds us whats best about Afg. He remains an asset to the cricketing world. No we are not giving him away. @narendramodi," he tweeted.
Meanwhile, many cricketing legends and fans, including Sachin Tendulkar, lauded the 19-year-old's stunning performance:
"Always felt @rashidkhan_19 was a good spinner but now I wouldn't hesitate in saying he is the best spinner in the world in this format. Mind you, he's got some batting skills as well. Great guy," Tendulkar tweeted.
Reflecting on his performance, Rashid said, "It was much needed for me, just tried my best to give 100 per cent in bowling, batting and fielding. Full focus was to believe in my skills. Want to dedicate my award to those people who lost their lives in a blast back home."
Hyderabad paid Rs 40 million ($590,580) at last year's auction to land the leg-spinner from Afghanistan, where cricket is highly popular but sporting facilities are pitifully inadequate after decades of war. An intense bidding war erupted for his services in the auction this year before Hyderabad exercised their right-to-match option for a staggering Rs 90 million ($1.33 million).
He has made rapid strides since making his international debut in October 2015 as a 17-year-old, in February becoming the youngest to top the International Cricket Council's rankings for bowlers in the Twenty20 and 50-overs format.
