Ford Games Conversation With a Coach

CHARLES CURTIS ’04

The sport of cricket—the game from the United Kingdom that baseball descended from—has been a staple on Haverford’s campus for nearly two centuries. Given that it’s not the most popular of sports in the United States, it’s not a game played at most American colleges. In fact, Haverford boasts the only varsity cricket team in the country. So the team—which is co0ed—club squads from the Philadelphia area and beyond.

What’s even more impressive: Kamran Khan has been Haverford’s cricket coach for a quarter of those nearly 200 years. The Pakistan native came to the United States in 1972, began coaching a year later while still finishing his master’s degree at Villanova University, and never looked back—even while considering other careers. In April, at an event on campus, alumni and current-team cricket players celebrated his 50 years as head coach, along with his 2023 induction into the United States Cricket Hall of Fame. Khan spoke to sports writer Charles Curtis ’04 about his love for the game, how he fatefully ended up at Haverford, and what it means to coach generations of athletes.

“I have never enjoyed anything more than coaching at Haverford,” says Kamran Khan about the half-century he has spent nurturing cricket players.