Khan's government inherited a balance of payments crisis and sought bailouts from the IMF; he presided over GDP growth after initial contraction, implemented austerity policies and increased tax collection.

[32] Some of the other women with whom he was associated with during this period include Zeenat Aman,[36] Sarah Crawley,[32] Stephanie Beacham,[37] Goldie Hawn,[38] Marie Helvin,[38] Caroline Kellett,[39] Liza Campbell,[12] Anastasia Cooke,[33] and Hannah Rothschild.

[74] His credentials as one of the fastest bowlers in the world started to become established when he finished third at 139.7 km/h in a fast bowling contest at Perth in 1978, behind Jeff Thomson and Michael Holding but ahead of Dennis Lillee, Garth Le Roux, and Andy Roberts.

[111] In 2004, when the Indian cricket team toured Pakistan after 14 years, he was a commentator on TEN Sports' special live show, Straight Drive,[112] while he was also a Sify columnist for the 2005 India-Pakistan Test series.

[126][127] In 2006, Imran Khan, then Chancellor of the University of Bradford, announced his vision to establish Namal College, a technical institution in his hometown, stating, "I want to make young people employable by arming them with the skills they will need to get jobs.

[134] In January 2013, IKF announced a Rs30 million emergency relief project for internally displaced persons (IDPs), refugees of the war on terror, belonging to the Mehsud tribe of North Waziristan who were neglected by the government.

The state-run television refused to broadcast archival footage of Imran's cricketing heyday and banned fundraising advertisements for his Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital during Ramadan, a month when Muslims traditionally give to charity.

"[149] On 6 May 2005, Khan was mentioned in The New Yorker as being the "most directly responsible" for drawing attention in the Muslim world to the Newsweek story about the alleged desecration of the Qur'an in a US military prison at the Guantánamo Bay Naval Base in Cuba.

[168] He addressed different public meetings in various cities of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and other parts of country, where he announced that PTI will introduce a uniform education system in which the children of rich and poor would have equal opportunities.

the Establishment (the military and other influential institutions), played a behind-the-scenes role in facilitating the talks between PTI and PML-N. General Raheel Sharif, the Chief of Army Staff, was instrumental in encouraging the political parties to unite.

Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, Chairman of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), condemned Khan's decision, stating that the federal government's mixed signals weakened initial lockdown efforts, and that doctors in cities like Lahore and Karachi protested the lack of support, especially in testing capabilities.

[250][251] The ambiguity of the federal policy led to inconsistent enforcement across the country, exacerbated by religious clerics pressuring the government to keep mosques open during Ramadan, contributing to widespread violations of safety guidelines.

[275] This culminated in the 2019 Balakot airstrike by India, which Pakistan countered with Operation Swift Retort, leading to the capture of Indian pilot Abhinandan Varthaman, whom Khan later released as a peace gesture.

His visit coincided with the onset of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, prompting international criticism, including from the United States, which urged responsible nations to oppose Vladimir Putin's actions.

[294] After his government's ouster, Khan claimed that the visit had secured offers for discounted oil and wheat from Russia, although this was denied by the Russian Ambassador to Pakistan, who stated that no formal agreements had been signed.

These measures, which included devaluing the rupee, slashing subsidies, and targeting ambitious tax revenue goals, led to criticism from those who believed they contradicted Khan's promises of establishing an Islamic welfare state.

[306] By the end of 2020, Pakistan's current account had shifted to surplus for the first time in years, largely due to increased remittances, though experts cautioned that the gains were temporary and linked to pandemic-related factors.

[309] Despite these advancements, Pakistan's economic difficulties persisted under Khan's leadership, with the nation grappling with high inflation, energy price hikes, and a volatile currency, all contributing to political and public dissatisfaction.

[322][323] Despite claims of significant financial recoveries of Rs487 billion by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB),[324][325] Pakistan's ranking on the Corruption Perceptions Index worsened from 117th in 2018 to 140th in 2021, leading to criticism of the effectiveness of Khan's anti-corruption measures.

[343] During Khan's tenure as Prime Minister of Pakistan, there was progress in improving security, as evidenced by a 13% reduction in terrorist attacks in 2019 compared to the previous year, although challenges remained in regions such as Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and concerns about terrorism financing persisted.

[362][363] In early 2022, a leaked Pakistani diplomatic cipher revealed that during a meeting on 7 March 2022, US State Department officials, including Donald Lu, expressed concerns over Khan's stance on the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

[391] In an audio message sent to journalists, Khan stated that he had been "waiting outside the [judicial complex's] door" and had been "fully trying to enter," but the police's use of tear gas made it seem that "they don't want" him to reach court.

[406] On 5 August 2023, Khan was arrested for the second time and sentenced to three years in prison after being found guilty of misusing his premiership from 2018 to 2022 to buy and sell gifts in state possession that were received during visits abroad and worth more than 140 million rupees.

[412][413] In August 2023, the government submitted a report to the Supreme Court of Pakistan, stating that Khan's daily meals included bread, omelette, curd, and tea for breakfast, along with fresh fruits, vegetables, pulses, rice, and desi mutton cooked in ghee for lunch and dinner.

Legal analysis from King's Counsel Hugh Southey of Matrix Chambers, as well as policy advocacy group Beltway Grid, said that Oxford's regulations set standards of integrity and impartiality that Khan did not meet.

[472] In August 2012, the Pakistani Taliban issued death threats against Khan if he proceeded with his march to their tribal stronghold near the Afghan border to protest U.S. drone strikes in Pakistan, because he calls himself a "liberal" – a term they associate with a lack of religious belief.

"[509] Ayesha Siddiqa, in September 2014, writing for The Express Tribune, said that "while we can all sympathise with Khan's right to change the political tone, it would be worthwhile for him to envision how he would, if he did become the prime minister of this country, put the genie back into the bottle.

These included Pepsi Pakistan, Brooke Bond,[514] Thums Up (along with Sunil Gavaskar),[515] and the Indian soap brand Cinthol, at a time when Bollywood legend Vinod Khanna was also endorsing the same product.

[519][520] In 2014, Canadian rock band Nickelback released a music video for its politically themed single "Edge of a Revolution", featuring a short clip of a Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) rally among other protests.

"[539][540][541][542] During his keynote address at the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation's (OIC) Extraordinary Session of Foreign Ministers on 19 December 2021, which was held in Islamabad to discuss the humanitarian situation in Afghanistan, Khan said that not allowing girls to study was part of Afghan culture, and that the world should respect that.