Cricketers might wear glasses to protect their eyes from sunlight or for better vision.
Some cricket teams might become complacent whenever they face opposing cricketers who wear glasses. But underrating a specs-wearing cricketer could be a massive mistake, as many teams have found out.
The appearance of cricketers with glasses is common across domestic or regional leagues and even international competitions.
So, here’s a list of some popular cricketers who have played on-field cricket with glasses.
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Anil Kumble – India
Even if he wore glasses for a fraction of his career, it would be feel criminal to not feature Anil Kumble on this list.
The Indian registered 44 wickets short of an international millennium, 956 in total. Anil also hauled – wait for it – 35 sets of five-wickets at Test cricket!
He’s also one of very few cricketers to have ever claimed 10 wickets in an innings for India against Pakistan.
Imam Ul Haq – Pakistan
One of Pakistan’s brightest talents, Imam Ul Haq is the second Pakistani ever to score a century at his first international match. The specs-wearing Pakistani is still a major player in international cricket and we may see more of his bespectacled heroics in future matches.
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Daniel Vettori – New Zealand
During his playing days, Daniel Vettori looked more like a school teacher than a wicked left-arm spin bowl guru. Many opponents took his appearance at face value and ended up losing several Test matches he bowled in.
Vettori also coupled his bowling prowess with decent batting proficiency and was an excellent cricketer in all three formats. He captained the New Zealand team for over 30 Tests and led his team to the 2015 World Cup final.
Before his retirement, Vettori had registered more than 700 international wickets throughout his international career. Quite decent for a bespectacled spin bowler and batsman.
Dilip Doshi – India
Cricket fans will remember Dilip Doshi’s mercurial left-arm spinners more than his preference for playing with glasses on. The bowler made his name (with specs on) across cricket competitions in England and India before receiving international honors later in his career.
Dilip’s glasses didn’t get in the way as he registered eight (8) wickets for 167 runs in a match against Australia. His 100 wicket count in just over two-dozen Test matches is decent even by today’s standards.
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Zaheer Abbas – Pakistan
Few cricketers could match the relentless runs of Zaheer Abbas in his heyday. Nicknamed ‘The Bradman of Asia’, Zaheer ruled the cricket scene for at least two decades before calling it quits.
He was so good even with glasses on that he managed to score a century of first-class cricket centuries. Only Zaheer was able to achieve this feat during his playing days.
He will go on to become a legend of English cricket and has held some important positions at the ICC. Zaheer is also one of four (4) Pakistani cricketers who married an Indian.
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