Mr. Salman Iqbal, President of the World Memon Organisation is conferred the Sitara-i-Imtiaz for his eternal Services to Cricket

Salman Iqbal’s love for cricket is an open secret but to fathom the depths of his love for the game, you have to be among his select circle of lifelong friends.

To witness his extraordinary zeal for the game and the monumental impact that cricket made on his life as a child, changing it forever. To recollect his school days, when he eagerly cycled many a miles under the blazing sun to reach and play at his favourite cricket grounds. To hear the palpable excitement in his voice and notice the twinkle in his eyes as he recalls the momentous night when the roaring fans at the packed National Stadium of Karachi chanted his name in unison. The night when he brought cricket back to the city of lights after an agonizingly long wait, as the proud owner of 𝙆𝙖𝙧𝙖𝙘𝙝𝙞 𝙆𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙨, its very own home team of the 𝙋𝙖𝙠𝙞𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙣 𝙎𝙪𝙥𝙚𝙧 𝙇𝙚𝙖𝙜𝙪𝙚 (𝙋𝙎𝙇) franchise. You have to only glance at his Instagram profile picture which remains unchanged and has immortalized the moment when Karachi Kings were crowned winners as he lifted the coveted PSL trophy. Or play the short clip of the recently concluded WMO cricket tournament where he exults with both arms up in the air as he gets his man with the perfect delivery. 𝙎𝙖𝙡𝙢𝙖𝙣 𝙄𝙦𝙗𝙖𝙡’𝙨 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙘𝙧𝙞𝙘𝙠𝙚𝙩 𝙞𝙨 𝙖𝙣 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙡𝙖𝙨𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙖𝙛𝙛𝙖𝙞𝙧.

Mr. Salman Iqbal has received constant recognition for the many milestones that he has achieved in his life. He is a regular feature on the prestigious 𝟓𝟎𝟎 𝙈𝙤𝙨𝙩 𝙄𝙣𝙛𝙡𝙪𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙞𝙖𝙡 𝙈𝙪𝙨𝙡𝙞𝙢𝙨 list. The media mogul and President of the 𝘼𝙍𝙔 conglomerate is perched on the highest pinnacles of success. His towering accomplishments in the spheres of media and industry have received their fair share of attention, adulation and awards but to be bestowed with one of the highest civilian honours of the land for his 𝙎𝙚𝙧𝙫𝙞𝙘𝙚𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝘾𝙧𝙞𝙘𝙠𝙚𝙩; I believe this one will always have a special place in his heart because it is a testament to his love for the game. His unbridled enthusiasm and infectious passion for cricket have spread to all corners of the country and even transcended borders. 𝙃𝙚 𝙝𝙖𝙨 𝙞𝙣𝙨𝙥𝙞𝙧𝙚𝙙, 𝙢𝙤𝙩𝙞𝙫𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙙 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙚𝙣𝙘𝙤𝙪𝙧𝙖𝙜𝙚𝙙 𝙢𝙞𝙡𝙡𝙞𝙤𝙣𝙨 𝙤𝙛 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙜𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙨 𝙞𝙣 𝙋𝙖𝙠𝙞𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙣 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙖𝙘𝙧𝙤𝙨𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙜𝙡𝙤𝙗𝙚, 𝙩𝙝𝙧𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙝 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙢𝙚𝙙𝙞𝙪𝙢 𝙤𝙛 𝙨𝙥𝙤𝙧𝙩𝙨.

So when the honourable President of Pakistan awards the august 𝙎𝙞𝙩𝙖𝙧𝙖- 𝙞 -𝙄𝙢𝙩𝙞𝙖𝙯 to Salman Iqbal for his extensive Services to Cricket, I will be the first amongst the millions to stand up and applaud him. 𝙃𝙚 𝙞𝙨 𝙖 𝙩𝙧𝙪𝙚 𝙘𝙤𝙣𝙣𝙤𝙞𝙨𝙨𝙚𝙪𝙧 𝙤𝙛 𝙘𝙧𝙞𝙘𝙠𝙚𝙩 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙧𝙚𝙢𝙖𝙞𝙣𝙨 𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙜𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙨𝙩 𝙖𝙢𝙗𝙖𝙨𝙨𝙖𝙙𝙤𝙧𝙨 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙜𝙖𝙢𝙚.