17 Facts About Ronnie Irani

Ronald Charles Irani was born on 26 October 1971 and is an English former cricketer.

Ronnie Irani played three Tests for England in 1996 and 1999, but found a niche in One Day Internationals, where he gained much praise for his performances.

Ronnie Irani spent most of his career at Essex County Cricket Club, latterly as captain, after starting at Lancashire.

Ronnie Irani is of Irani descent, the Iranis being a community of Persian Zoroastrians who immigrated to India during the British Raj.

Ronnie Irani was a genuine all-rounder until a knee injury in 2003 forced him to stop bowling and play as a specialist batsman.

The injury led to Ronnie Irani being forced to retire from first-class cricket in June 2007.

At Essex, Ronnie Irani helped bring through promising players such as Alastair Cook and Ravinder Bopara, as well as winning two major One-Day Titles.

Jimmy Irani was an enthusiastic, successful and prolific club cricketer with Daisy Hill and Atherton in the Bolton Association who often put up overseas players, such as Farokh Engineer and Javed Miandad, during Ronnie's childhood.

Ronnie Irani started his career playing for Lancashire in 1990, before he moved to Essex in 1994.

Ronnie Irani was awarded fans' player of the series in Natwest Series 2002 featuring India and Sri Lanka for his allround performance.

Ronnie Irani scored 169 runs and took 8 wickets in the tri-series.

Ronnie Irani appeared as a guest on the BBC quiz show A Question of Sport.

Ronnie Irani was part of a celebrity 'consortium' who clubbed together to pay for Paul Gascoigne to receive treatment for alcoholism in the US.

In 2015, Ronnie Irani took up the position of Cricket Committee Chairman at Essex and expressed his desire for the club to improve its performances.

Ronnie Irani is known by many sports fans for an "Exercise Routine" during an England One-Day International in Australia.

Ronnie Irani was doing a warm-up while fielding, and unbeknown to Irani, the Australian fans were imitating his routine behind his back.

Ronnie Irani is a long time supporter of Manchester United, after being taken to games by his father when he was a child.