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Pakistan national cricket team all-rounder Faheem Ashraf has sparked yet another India-Pakistan debate after talking about the players he admired while growing up. Faheem Ashraf has caught everyone’s attention by surprisingly choosing an Indian superstar as one of his inspirations.
Many have appreciated Faheem Ashraf for openly praising India’s players but at the same time, some fans were not happy with the indirect comment he made while speaking about Indian players and cross-border relations, which is now at its lowest level since 2025.
Faheem Ashraf sparks new debate between India-Pakistan with choice of Suresh Raina
Recently, Faheem Ashraf revealed that some of the biggest names who inspired him with the bat were Pakistan legend Saeed Anwar, West Indies great Chris Gayle and Sri Lanka icon Kumar Sangakkara. Furthermore, the Pakistani star surprisingly chose former Indian superstar Suresh Raina over Sachin Tendulkar, Virat Kohli and MS Dhoni.
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When it came to bowling, the bowling all-rounder said that Mohammad Asif is the player he admires the most. However, he indirectly took a cruel dig at the current generation of players who never praise Pakistani legends openly due to cross-border tensions.
“My idols with the bat were Saeed Anwar, Gayle, Sangakkara and Raina. There may be restrictions on Indian players and maybe they can’t talk openly about us, but we have no problem taking their names. With the ball, I consider Mohammad Asif as my idol. He was really inspirational,” Faheem said on a YouTube podcast.
Faheem Ashraf said, “My idols in bat were Saeed Anwar, Gayle, Sangakkara and Raina.
There may be restrictions on Indian players and perhaps they cannot talk openly about us, but we have no problem in taking their names
With the ball, I consider Mohammad Asif as my idol. He was really inspiring”
[Hassan Azam YT] https://t.co/LTRGmcoBat pic.twitter.com/Tbo4psGUNB
– Pavilion Post (@CricinsightsX) 17 May 2026
Faheem Ashraf considers Saeed Anwar, Chris Gayle, Suresh Raina and Kumar Sangakkara as his idols.
Saeed Anwar is one of the most stylish openers Pakistan has ever produced. He completely changed the way opening batsmen attacked fast bowlers and became a nightmare for bowlers during the 1990s. His brilliant shots and fearless aggressive batting made him one of the most dangerous players of his generation. He scored over 8,800 ODI runs and over 4000 Test runs.
Chris Gayle, on the other hand, became one of the biggest entertainers and most dangerous batsmen the game has ever seen. The West Indies legend changed T20 cricket with his explosive six-hitting power. He is fondly known as the “Universe Boss” among fans as he instilled fear in all leagues and international games by hitting massive sixes and destroying bowling attacks.
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Gayle finished his career with over 10,000 ODI runs, over 7000 Test runs and almost 2000 T20I runs. Kumar Sangakkara was another player whom Ashraf respected. The great Sri Lankan player was known for his calmness, consistency and excellent batting style. He has more than 12000 Test and 14000 ODI runs to his name.
Speaking about Suresh Raina, the former India star played a huge role in India’s success in white-ball cricket during the MS Dhoni era. Apart from being a useful off-spinner, his aggressive batting, amazing fielding and ability to handle pressure made him one of the best players. Raina has scored more than 5600 runs in ODI and more than 1600 runs in T20I cricket.
Faheen Ashraf has called Mohammad Asif a ‘true inspiration’
Ashraf’s decision to choose Mohammad Asif has surprised many. Even though Asif’s career ended early due to the spot-fixing controversy, he was one of the finest swing and seam bowlers Pakistan has ever produced.
He was not that fast a bowler, but he had a special knack for swinging and seaming the ball both ways, which troubled some of the greatest batsmen of his generation. Asif has 106 wickets in 23 Tests, 46 wickets in 38 ODIs and 13 wickets in 11 T20Is.
