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Shahid Afridi

Shahid Afridi in 2017
Shahid Afridi in 2017 Image: Wikimedia Commons. Shehbaz Sharif / CC BY 2.0

Sahibzada Mohammad Shahid Khan Afridi (born 1 March 1977) is a Pakistani former cricketer who captained the Pakistan national cricket team across formats. An all-rounder, he batted right-handed and bowled right-arm leg spin. Afridi is widely associated with aggressive, fast-scoring batting, and on his international batting debut as a teenager he broke the record for the fastest century in One Day International cricket.

Key facts

Full name Sahibzada Mohammad Shahid Khan Afridi
Born 1 March 1977
Nationality Pakistani
Role All-rounder
Batting Right-handed
Bowling Right-arm leg spin
ODI debut 1996, against Kenya
Test debut 1998, against Australia
T20I debut 2006, against England
International retirement 19 February 2017 (re-announced 31 May 2018)

Early international career

Afridi made his ODI debut for Pakistan in 1996 against Kenya. In his second ODI, against Sri Lanka, he played his first international innings and set the record for the fastest century in ODI cricket, reaching the milestone in 37 deliveries. He made his Test debut against Australia in 1998 and his Twenty20 International debut against England in 2006.

T20 World Cup success

Afridi was named Player of the Tournament at the 2007 ICC World Twenty20. Two years later, at the 2009 ICC World Twenty20, he was Player of the Match in the final, scoring an unbeaten 54 and returning figures of 1/20 from four overs as Pakistan won the title.

Captaincy

Following Pakistan's 2009 World Twenty20 victory, captain Younis Khan retired from T20Is, and Afridi was appointed his successor. In 2010, Afridi was named Pakistan's ODI captain after Mohammad Yousuf was removed from the role. He was also appointed Test captain but retired from the format after a single match in charge.

Afridi led Pakistan at the 2011 Cricket World Cup, where the team reached the semi-finals before losing to India. Later in 2011, he was removed as ODI captain.

Later career and retirement

Afridi retired from ODI cricket in 2015. After Pakistan's group-stage exit at the 2016 ICC World Twenty20, he stepped down from the captaincy and was subsequently not selected for the national side. On 19 February 2017, he announced his retirement from international cricket.

He briefly returned to represent and captain a World XI against the West Indies in the 2018 Hurricane Relief T20 Challenge charity match, after which he again announced his retirement from international cricket on 31 May 2018.

Afridi later served as the interim chief selector of the Pakistan cricket team during Pakistan's series against New Zealand.

Philanthropy

Afridi runs the Shahid Afridi Foundation, a charity that works to provide education and healthcare facilities. He has partnered with UNICEF to promote the anti-polio campaign in Pakistan. During the 2019 coronavirus pandemic, he assisted people across Balochistan during the national lockdown; he subsequently contracted COVID-19, which was confirmed on 13 June 2020. He was also listed among the top 20 most charitable athletes of 2015.

Significance

Afridi is one of the most recognisable figures in Pakistani cricket, having played international cricket across three decades and captained Pakistan in all three formats. His record-setting ODI century on debut and his match-winning performance in the 2009 World Twenty20 final are among the defining moments of his career.

References