Name: Ifthikar Anjum

Birth date: 1980-12-01

Hometown: Khanewal

Teams: Pakistan, Agriculture Development Bank of Pakistan, Islamabad Cricket Association, Zarai Taraqiati Bank Limited

Debut: 30th Sep 2004

ODI Best: 4-59 | 32

Test Best: n/a

Not in the typical mould of famed Pakistani fast bowlers, nevertheless Roa Iftikhar’s nonchalant approach and quiet effectiveness has meant he has become a mainstay of the ODI side over the last year. At a time when more prominent bowlers were either injured or suspended, Itikhar has been establishing his role as a consistent middle overs bowler, primarily used to restrict the flow of runs, building pressure and breaking partnerships.

Match winning performance have been rare but likewise have been spells where batsmen have completely taken the initiative and for this reason the stability and experience provided have won him favour with the selectors. Although nothing quicker than a medium-fast bowler, even on the rather placid sub-continent tracks Rao's bowling style (particularly on breaking surfaces) make him difficult to get away, never affording the batsmen much room and his off-cutters can be particularly difficult with the wearing ball in contrast to his stock outswing delivery..

Making his debut in 2004 after a strong domestic campaign, Rao was primarily seen as a back-up bowler and his appearances over the next few years were rather limited to a handful of ODI matches and a solitary test in Sri Lanka, where his performances were rather unmemorable.

From 2007 onwards he became a more permanent fixture in the side with the prolonged absence of the likes of Akhtar, Asif and the unavailability of Rana Naved and Mohammad Sami, two previous ODI regulars. As a result his prominence and wicket taking ability have grown with the extra responsibility of being a permanent front line bowler. Time will tell if Rao is only a stop gap solution as Pakistan search out their next batch of match winning quicks or whether he has the ability to command a place in the side ahead of younger upstarts.

Rao only played one match in the recent one day series in UAE and was not included in the squad for the Twenty / 20 World Cup which must raise suspicions about his future at international level, especially with youngsters like Mohammad Aamer and Mohammad Talha catching the eye of the selectors.