5 cricketers who have changed their names. Most people change their names for a variety of reasons. Let us take a look at 5 cricketers who have done the same.
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We all have names given to us around our birth. While most of us carry these names to our graves, there are a few who go ahead and change. There are many reasons as to why one would make that change such as changing one’s religion or for sentimental reasons.
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Some people even change their names out of their idolatry of someone that they look up to. It is not always however, that the change is accepted by one’s family and in some cases even causes conflict within families.
Here at Sportsrush, we will look at 5 cricketers who have undergone a name change and look at the reasons why they made the change. With that out of the way, let us take a look at 5 cricketers who have changed their names.
#5) Asghar Afghan (Afghanistan)
Former Afghanistan captain Asghar Afghan was born Mohammad Asghar Stanikzai. The middle order batsman decided to change his surname back in August 2018. When asked about the surname, he answered that he was pleased to have included the word ‘Afghan’ beside his name. He also mentioned how it was the national duty of the Afghans to protect their national identity.
The decision became official when Afghan registered for the new Electronic National Identity Cards (E-tazkira). Later the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) had also posted about the change of name on their official Twitter handle.
Asghar is one of Afghanistan’s longest serving players and was even named their captain for their inaugural Test match against India. However, he was stripped off the captaincy across all three formats earlier this year in April.
#4) Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi (India)
Former India player and their youngest ever Test Captain, Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi, was the 6th Nawab of Pataudi. He was only 11 years old when he received the title after his father passed away in 1952. He made his Indian Cricket debut in 1961 and was made captain of the side just a year later when he was only 21 years old.
Commentator John Arlott and former England captain Ted Dexter described him as the best fielder in the world during his time. MAK Pataudi played until 1975. Until 1971 he played under his name. However, when the Government of India officially ceased to recognise princely titles, MAK Pataudi changed his name to Nawab of Pataudi junior.
The 1964 Arjuna Award recipient represented India in 46 Test Matches. He scored 2793 runs with an average of 34.91. His highest score was a 203 not out. He also holds the record for facing the most balls in a single test match when batting at number six position in Test history (554).
#3) Bob Willis (England)
England’s 4th highest test wicket taker, terrorised batsmen around the world and his 325 wickets was second only to Dennis Lillee at the time. The legendary fast bowler would go on to captain his country and received special praise from Ian Botham, who called him the only world class fast bowler his time as an England Player.
Bob Willis was born Robert George Willis. However, he was awestruck by the class and aura of Bob Dylan; an influential American musician. So much so, that he decided to adopt his second name into his own. The former Robert George Willis would then become Robert Dylan George Willis. He did it through a deed pole, a legal document used for change of name, in 1965.
Bob Willis played much of his career under tremendous pain after having surgery on both knees. The pain didn’t stop him from achieving greatness though as he bowled day in and day out with a big heart. After his retirement Willis became a commentator with Sky Sports and is an often heard broadcaster.
#2) Mohammad Yousuf (Pakistan)
Mohammad Yousuf, born Yousuf Youhana, was one of the very few Christians to have played for the Pakistan Cricket team. In fact, before his conversion to Islam, he was only the 4th Christian and 5th non-Muslim to have represented the country.
Mohammad Yousuf is, so far, the only non-Muslim to have ever captained Pakistan. He did so when he led the side during the tour of Australia in 2004-05. However, after attending the teachings of Tablighi Jamaat, Pakistan’s largest non-political religious grouping, he decided to convert to Islam.
His wife Tania, also adopted the religion and changed her name to Fatima. However, the news was kept private for three months due to family reasons, before his announcement of their conversion publicly in September 2005.
“I don’t want to give Yousuf my name after what he has done”, his mother was quoted as saying by the Daily Times newspaper. “We came to know about his decision when he offered Friday prayers at a local mosque. It was a shock”, his mother was reported as saying. However, Yousuf told the BBC that “I cannot tell you what a great feeling it is.”
#1) Tillakaratne Dilshan (Sri Lanka)
Tillakaratne Dilshan is a Sri Lankan gem. The Former player is considered a very rare cricketer because of his notable skills in all aspects of the game. The former Sri Lankan skipper would open the batting for his side and could bowl handy off spin.
He was also an excellent fielder and was a more than capable wicket keeper. Dilshan is the first player to score a century as the captain in all 3 formats. He was also the inventor of the Dilscoop, a shot that hits the ball over the keeper.
Like Mohammad Yousuf before him, Dilshan changed his name for religious reasons. However, he was born a Muslim with the name Tuwan Mohammad Dilshan. Dilshan changed his religion to Buddhism, his mother’s religion, after his parents divorced.
The TM in his name, which previously stood for Tuwan Mohammad, has since stood for Tillakaratne Mudiyanselage. Dilshan’s childhood coach Ranjan Paranavitana mentioned that even though the former cricketer carried a Muslim name, he and his brothers and sisters followed their mother’s religion from their childhood.
This concludes our list of 5 cricketers who have changed their names.
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