Karim Sadiq

Karim Khan Sadiq (كريم خان صادق; born 28 February 1984) is an Afghan cricketer. He is a right-handed batsman who occasionally serves as a wicket-keeper for the Afghanistan national team. He can also bowl off break, and took 4 wickets for 27 runs against Denmark in their first match of the 2009 ICC World Cup Qualifier.

Early career
Sadiq is a part of the rapidly rising Afghan cricket team that in under a year has won the World Cricket League Division Five, Division Four and Division Three, thus promoting them to Division Two and allowing them to partake in the 2009 ICC World Cup Qualifier's.

He was suspended for one match during the 2009 ICC World Cup Qualifier due to "inappropriate and intentional physical contact" in their defeat to the Netherlands. During the tournament he performed well with the bat, top scoring with 92, and, surprisingly for a wicketkeeper, with the ball.

Quitting Afghanistan
Shortly after Afghanistan achieved ODI status, Sadiq quit the national setup as he was upset at his brother, Hasti Gul, being dropped for their ICC Intercontinental Cup match against Zimbabwe XI. Sadiq accused national coach Kabir Khan of not acting in the best interest of the team.

Return
Sadiq's international retirement was short lived, as he made his first-class debut in January 2010 against Ireland, where he made scores of 19 and 1.

In February 2010, Sadiq made his Twenty20 International debut in the Sri Lanka Associates T20 Series against Ireland. Sadiq took 2/17 with the ball. Afghanistan lost the match by 5 wickets. Later, Sadiq was a key member of Afghanistan's World Twenty20 Qualifier winning team. He was later named in Afghanistan's squad for the 2010 ICC World Twenty20.

Sadiq was a key member of Afghanistan's 2010 ACC Trophy Elite winning squad, which defeated Nepal in the final by 95 runs. In final, Sadiq top-scored for Afghanistan with 58 runs. In Afghanistan's first match of the tournament, he scored 130 runs off 92 balls against Bhutan in Afghanistan's 393-run win.

He later played for the newly formed Afghan Cheetahs team in the Faysal Bank Twenty-20 Cup 2011-12. Sadiq later featured in Afghanistan's first One Day International against a Full Member Test-playing nation when they played Pakistan at Sharjah Cricket Association Stadium in February 2012. Sadiq top scored in Afghanistan's innings with 40 runs, before becoming one of Shahid Afridi's five wickets. Pakistan won the encounter by 7 wickets.

In September 2018, he was named in Kandahar's squad in the first edition of the Afghanistan Premier League tournament.