From cricket hero to Pakistan's ousted PM: Imran Khan's tumultuous journey

From captaining Pakistan's national team to its first World Cup victory in 1992 to leading protests and facing legal battles, here's a look at Imran Khan's career

Pakistan’s political crisis deepened as the opposition party Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), led by former prime minister Imran Khan, called off its protest in Islamabad on Wednesday. The decision followed a government crackdown that saw the arrest of hundreds of PTI supporters and key leaders, including Khan’s wife, Bushra Bibi, and senior leader Ali Amin Gandapur.

 

The Interior Ministry announced that law enforcement had cleared the main avenue in the capital early Wednesday morning. Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi revealed that key PTI leaders had escaped during the operation. PTI lawmaker Atif Khan later confirmed the end of the protest, citing the government’s “brutal action.”

 

 

Imran Khan: Background

Born in Lahore to a Pashtun family of the Niazi tribe, Khan grew up in an upper-middle-class household with four sisters. Educated at Aitchison College, Lahore, and later Royal Grammar School Worcester in England, he excelled in cricket and later graduated from Keble College, Oxford, in 1975 with a degree in philosophy, politics, and economics.

 

Khan’s cricketing career peaked when he captained Pakistan to its first-ever World Cup victory in 1992. Post-retirement, he transitioned into philanthropy, founding the Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital in Lahore, inspired by his late mother who had died of cancer.

 

He later entered politics, promising economic reforms, anti-corruption measures, and the creation of a “Naya Pakistan” (New Pakistan). However, his tenure faced criticism for failing to deliver on these promises and for mismanaging relations with political and military stakeholders and also with important Pakistan allies like Saudi Arabia.

 

Imran Khan’s cricket career

1971: Made his Test debut against England at Edgbaston.

  1976: Returned to Pakistan and secured a permanent spot on the national team.

 

Late 1970s: Became a pioneer of the reverse swing bowling technique, achieving a batting average of 61.86 at position 6 in Test cricket.

 

1982: Took over as captain of the Pakistan cricket team.

 

January 1992: Played his last Test match against Sri Lanka in Faisalabad.

 

Career stats:

• 88 Test matches
• 126 innings
• 3,807 runs at an average of 37.69, including six centuries and 18 fifties

 

Imran Khan: Political career

April 25, 1996: Founded the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI).

 

1997: Contested the National Assembly elections from Mianwali and Lahore but lost both seats.

 

October 2002: Elected to the National Assembly from Mianwali.

 

2011-2013: Held massive rallies in Lahore and Karachi, challenging government policies and engaging in a political feud with Nawaz Sharif.

 

2018 General Elections: Contested from five constituencies—Bannu, Islamabad, Mianwali, Lahore, and Karachi East.

 

August 18, 2018: Sworn in as prime minister after PTI won 116 of 270 contested seats.

 

In his victory speech, Khan outlined policies inspired by the first Islamic state of Medina and aimed to improve foreign relations with countries like China, Afghanistan, the United States, and India.

 

Imran Khan: Ousting, arrest, and legal battles

April 2022: Removed as prime minister via a no-confidence vote.

  August 2022: Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) initiates the Toshakhana case, alleging failure to disclose state gifts in asset declarations.

 

October 2022: Disqualified from holding public office for false asset declarations.

 

May 9, 2023: Arrested by paramilitary forces on corruption charges, sparking nationwide protests.

 

May 11, 2023: Supreme Court declares his arrest unlawful and orders his release.

 

August 5, 2023: Sentenced to three years in prison for misuse of state gifts.

  August 29, 2023: Granted bail but remains in custody over the “cypher case,” accusing him of leaking state secrets.

 

January 30, 2024: Convicted and sentenced to 10 years for violating the Official Secrets Act.

 

February 3, 2024: Convicted alongside his wife, Bushra Bibi, for an unlawful marriage during her Iddat period, with both sentenced to seven years in prison.

 

June 3, 2024: Islamabad High Court overturns his conviction in the cypher case, though he remains in prison due to other charges.

 

July 13, 2024: Conviction in the unlawful marriage case overturned, but he continues to face charges from the 2023 riots.

 

November 20, 2024: Granted bail in the Toshakhana II case but faces fresh charges for inciting violence during September 2024 clashes.