Rashid Khan and Noor Ahmed share great camaraderie both on and off the field (Instagram/@GujaratTitans)
Rashid might have already become a household name for the IPL fans. But Noor Ahmad has just risen to fame after putting up an impressive performance in the 2023 season.
Gujarat Titans, in a recent Instagram post, highlighted the camaraderie between the two Afghan bowlers of their side– Rashid Khan and Noor Ahmad. The franchise dropped a short video on the Meta platform, comprising some special moments of Rashid and Noor from the 2023 Indian Premier League (IPL). The Afghan duo is quite recognised for their incredible relationship on and off the pitch. The clip featured a number of bromance moments between the two, from training inside the net to clicking photos together at parties. In the caption of the Instagram post, the Afghan bowlers were dubbed “Bade Miya and Chhote Miya,” nicknames which were derived from a 1998 movie of the same name starring Amitabh Bachchan and Govinda.
Rashid might have already become a household name for the IPL fans. But Noor Ahmad has just risen to fame after putting up an impressive performance in the 2023 season. The 18-year-old represented Gujarat Titans in 8 matches throughout the campaign, picking up 16 wickets in total.
Noor grabbed the attention in his debut IPL game against Rajasthan Royals. He came as an Impact player in the home match and went on to claim the big wicket of Rajasthan skipper Sanju Samson. After being smashed with a four and a six in two consecutive deliveries, the young left-arm spinner could trap Samson for a catch at the long-off. Since then, Noor turned into a regular in the Gujarat playing eleven.
Gujarat Titans’ assistant coach Aashish Kapoor was the one who brought Noor Ahmad to the team. According to a report by The Hindu, Aashish made a special request to Gujarat bowling coach Ashish Nehra to sign Noor from the 2022 mega auction.
“For me, Noor was a left-handed Rashid Khan. Together with Rashid, he can make a deadly combination,” Aashish said, as quoted by The Hindu. Noor’s bowling action was somewhat similar to Rashid’s when the youngster arrived at the Gujarat camp. But his coaches asked him to develop a new style of his own.
Rashid made 17 appearances during the 2023 IPL. The 24-year-old leg-spinner not only took 27 wickets but was equally impressive with the bat. He accumulated a total of 130 runs at a stunning strike rate of 216.67.
