ISLAMABAD: Former Pakistan women’s cricket captain Sana Mir made history on Monday by becoming the first female cricketer from the country to be inducted into the International Cricket Council (ICC) Hall of Fame.
The honour was announced during a special ceremony held ahead of the World Test Championship final, where seven new inductees were announced by West Indies great Ian Bishop.
Sana Mir was honoured alongside the Class of 2025, which includes India’s MS Dhoni, England’s Sarah Taylor, South Africa’s Hashim Amla and Graeme Smith, Australia’s Matthew Hayden, and New Zealand’s Daniel Vettori.
The former off-spinning all-rounder, who represented Pakistan internationally for nearly 15 years, becomes the eighth Pakistani and just the 14th woman ever to receive this prestigious recognition.
Throughout her career, she played a transformative role in advancing women’s cricket in Pakistan. Among her many achievements, she made history in 2018 by becoming the first Pakistani woman to top the ICC ODI bowling rankings.
Sana has played 226 international matches since her 2005 debut. She is one of only nine women cricketers to have taken 100 wickets and scored 1,000 runs in ODI matches.
During her eight-year tenure as captain, Mir led Pakistan to two Asian Games gold medals in 2010 and 2014, and steered the national team through five T20 World Cups and two ODI World Cups.
Her leadership was marked by historic milestones, including Pakistan’s first-ever ODI win against South Africa and a crucial role in securing a spot in the Super Six stage of the 2017 World Cup—highlighted by her match-winning 5/14 performance against Scotland.
“From dreaming as a little girl that one day there would even be a women’s team in our country to now standing here, inducted among the very legends I idolised long before I ever held a bat or a ball – this is a moment I couldn’t have dared to imagine,” she said.
“I am incredibly grateful for this honour and hope to give back to the sport in any way I can. I would like to take this opportunity to thank my teammates, coaches and family for all their support over the years,” she said.
Sana Mir retired in 2019 as one of Pakistan’s most decorated athletes, having also served as a vocal advocate for women’s sports and mental health awareness.
Mir joins seven other Pakistani cricketers in the Hall of Fame: Imran Khan, Wasim Akram, Javed Miandad, Abdul Qadir, Zaheer Abbas, Waqar Younis and Hanif Mohammad.
