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Sahibzada Mohammad Shahid Khan Afridi (, ; born 1 March 197

is a Pakistani former
cricketer Cricket is a Bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball game played between two Sports team, teams of eleven players on a cricket field, field, at the centre of which is a cricket pitch, pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two Bail (cr ...
and captain of the
Pakistan national cricket team The Pakistan men's national cricket team represents Pakistan in international cricket. It is controlled by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), the governing body for cricket in Pakistan, which is a Full Member of the International Cricket Counc ...
. An
all-rounder An all-rounder is a cricketer who regularly performs well at both batting and bowling. Although all bowlers must bat and quite a handful of batsmen do bowl occasionally, most players are skilled in only one of the two disciplines and are cons ...
, Afridi was a right-handed
leg spin Leg spin is a type of spin bowling in cricket. A bowler who uses this technique is called a leg spinner. Leg spinners bowl with their right-arm and a wrist spin action. The leg spinner's normal delivery is called a leg break, which spins fr ...
ner and a right-handed batsman. Afridi made his ODI debut in 1996 against
Kenya Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 52.4 million as of mid-2024, Kenya is the 27th-most-populous country in the world and the 7th most populous in Africa. ...
. In his second ODI match against
Sri Lanka Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...
, he played his first international innings and broke the record for fastest century in ODI cricket (doing so in 37 deliveries). He made his Test debut against
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
in 1998. Afridi made his T20I debut against
England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
in 2006. Afridi was named player of the tournament of the
2007 T20 World Cup The 2007 ICC World Twenty20 was the inaugural edition of the Men's T20 World Cup, formerly known as the ICC World Twenty20 that was contested in South Africa from 11 to 24 September 2007. Twelve teams took part in the thirteen-day tournament ...
. Afridi was player of the match in the
final Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: *Final examination or finals, a test given at the end of a course of study or training *Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which d ...
of the 2009 T20 World Cup scoring an unbeaten 54 and getting figures of 1/20 off of 4 overs as Pakistan went on to win the final. Shortly after Pakistan's win at the 2009 World Cup, Pakistan's captain,
Younis Khan Mohammad Younis Khan PP SI (Urdu: ; Pashto: ; born 29 November 1977) is a Pakistani professional cricket coach and former cricketer and captain of the Pakistan national cricket team in all three formats of the game, and is widely regarded as o ...
, announced his retirement from T20Is and Afridi was appointed as his successor. In 2010, Afridi was appointed Pakistan's ODI captain after the sacking of Mohammad Yousuf. Afridi was also appointed Pakistan's Test captain but retired from the format after one match as captain. He led the Pakistan team in the
2011 Cricket World Cup The 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup was the tenth Cricket World Cup. It was played in India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, while the latter hosted World Cup matches for the first time. India won the tournament, defeating Sri Lanka by six wickets in the 2 ...
where they reached the semi-finals before losing to rival India. In 2011, Afridi was removed as ODI captain. In 2015, Afridi retired from ODI cricket. After Pakistan's group stage elimination from the
2016 T20 World Cup The 2016 ICC World Twenty20 was the sixth edition of the ICC Men's T20 World Cup, formerly known as the ICC World Twenty20, a Twenty20 International cricket tournament that was held in India from 8 March to 3 April 2016, and was the first edi ...
, Afridi stepped down from captaincy. He was not selected afterwards and on 19 February 2017, Afridi announced his retirement from international cricket. He made a brief return to international cricket after being selected to represent and captain the World XI against the West Indies in the 2018 Hurricane Relief T20 Challenge charity match. Following the conclusion of the match, Afridi announced his retirement from international cricket again on 31 May 2018. He served as the interim chief selector of the Pakistan cricket team for Pakistan's series against New Zealand. Afridi runs his own charity, the Shahid Afridi Foundation which aims to provide education and healthcare facilities. He also teamed up with
UNICEF UNICEF ( ), originally the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund, officially United Nations Children's Fund since 1953, is an agency of the United Nations responsible for providing Humanitarianism, humanitarian and Development a ...
to promote the anti-polio campaign in the country. During the 2019 Coronavirus pandemic, he was involved in helping people across
Balochistan Balochistan ( ; , ), also spelled as Baluchistan or Baluchestan, is a historical region in West and South Asia, located in the Iranian plateau's far southeast and bordering the Indian Plate and the Arabian Sea coastline. This arid region o ...
during the
lockdown A lockdown () is a restriction policy for people, community or a country to stay where they are, usually due to specific risks that could possibly harm the people if they move and interact freely. The term is used for a prison protocol that us ...
in the country. This led to him contracting
COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...
on 13 June 2020. Afridi was also nominated among the top 20 most charitable athletes of 2015.


Early and personal life

Afridi was born in
Khyber Agency Khyber District (, ) is a district in the Peshawar Division of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. Until 2018, it was an agency of the erstwhile Federally Administered Tribal Areas. With the merger of FATA with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in ...
, Pakistan, to an
Afridi The Afrīdī ( ''Aprīdai'', plur. ''Aprīdī''; ) are a Pashtun tribe present mostly in tribal areas in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. The Afridis are most dominant in the Spin Ghar range west of Peshawar in Tribal areas of modern-day Khyb ...
tribe of
Pashtuns Pashtuns (, , ; ;), also known as Pakhtuns, or Pathans, are an Iranian peoples, Iranic ethnic group primarily residing in southern and eastern Afghanistan and northwestern Pakistan. They were historically also referred to as Afghan (ethnon ...
in 1977. He belongs to a family of Sufi pirs (teachers or spiritual masters) and his grandfather Maulana Muhammad Ilyas was a well-known spiritual figure in Bhutan Sharif, a locality in the
Tirah Valley Tirah, also spelled Terah (), also called the Tirah Valley (), is a mountainous region located in the Orakzai District and the southern part of the Khyber District, positioned between the Khyber Pass and the Khanki Valley in Pakistan. Due to ...
. His other grandfather, Sahibzada Abdul Baqi, was given the title '' Ghazi-e-Kashmir'' (conqueror of Kashmir) for his efforts during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1947–1948. In 2003, one of Shahid's first cousins, identified as Shaquib, was killed in an encounter with the Indian BSF on September 7, 2003, in
Anantnag Anantnag ( ; ), also called Islamabad ( ; ), is the administrative headquarters of Anantnag district of Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir (union territory), Jammu and Kashmir in the disputed Kashmir region.The application of the term "admi ...
,
Jammu and Kashmir Jammu and Kashmir may refer to: * Jammu and Kashmir (union territory), a region administered by India as a union territory since 2019 * Jammu and Kashmir (state), a region administered by India as a state from 1952 to 2019 * Jammu and Kashmir (prin ...
. The BSF had described Shaquib as a
battalion commander A battalion is a military unit, typically consisting of up to one thousand soldiers. A battalion is commanded by a lieutenant colonel and subdivided into several companies, each typically commanded by a major or a captain. The typical battal ...
of the Islamist
militant The English word ''militant'' is both an adjective and a noun, and it is generally used to mean vigorously active, combative and/or aggressive, especially in support of a cause, as in "militant reformers". It comes from the 15th century Lat ...
group
Harkat-ul-Ansar Harkat-ul-Mujahideen (; HUM) is a Pakistan-based Islamist jihadist group operating primarily in Kashmir.
. Afridi has six brothers, including fellow cricketers Tariq Afridi and Ashfaq Afridi, and five sisters. He is the fifth oldest of his siblings. He credits his uncle, a
colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...
in the
Pakistan Army The Pakistan Army (, ), commonly known as the Pak Army (), is the Land warfare, land service branch and the largest component of the Pakistan Armed Forces. The president of Pakistan is the Commander-in-chief, supreme commander of the army. The ...
, for introducing him to sports in general and to cricket in particular. Afridi has said that he was inspired by the stories about
Imran Khan Imran Ahmed Khan Niazi (born 5 October 1952) is a Pakistani politician, philanthropist, and former cricketer who served as the 19th prime minister of Pakistan from August 2018 until April 2022. He was the founder of the political party Pak ...
's captaincy throughout the
1992 Cricket World Cup The 1992 Cricket World Cup (known as the Benson & Hedges World Cup 1992 for sponsorship reasons) was the fifth Cricket World Cup, the premier One Day International cricket tournament for men's national teams, organised by the International Cric ...
and that the 1992 World Cup defined his cricket and taught him to never be afraid of failure. He is married to his maternal cousin Nadia Afridi and has five daughters. In 2021, Afridi announced his daughter Ansha's engagement to cricketer
Shaheen Afridi Shaheen Shah Afridi (; born 6 April 2000) is a Pakistani cricket, international cricketer and former captain of the national T20I team. A left-arm fast bowler, he made his debut for Pakistan in 2018, and quickly became a leading figure, winning t ...
. On 3 February 2023, his daughter, Ansha, married Shaheen Afridi in a
nikah In Islamic law, marriage is accomplished through the marriage contract, known as a () or more specifically, the bride's acceptance of the groom's dowry (''mahr'') and the witnessing of her acceptance. The contract has rights and obligatio ...
ceremony.


Domestic career

Afridi was drafted to the Pakistan senior national team after fine performances at the under-19 championship circuit starting the 1994–95 season. Playing for the Karachi Whites, he helped his team win the title the following season picking 42 wickets in five matches at an
average In colloquial, ordinary language, an average is a single number or value that best represents a set of data. The type of average taken as most typically representative of a list of numbers is the arithmetic mean the sum of the numbers divided by ...
of 9.59. Later that season, Afridi had played against the visiting England A and West Indies Youth teams and a few first-class games for Karachi Whites in the senior National Championship. In 2001, Afridi signed a contract to represent
Leicestershire Leicestershire ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It is bordered by Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire to the north, Rutland to the east, Northamptonshire to the south-east, Warw ...
. In five first-class matches he scored 295 runs at an average of 42.14, including a highest score of 164, and took 11 wickets at an average of 46.45; Afridi also played 11 one day matches for the club, scoring 481 runs at an average of 40.08 and taking 18 wickets at 24.04. His highest score of 95 came from 58 balls in a semi-final of the
C&G Trophy The Friends Provident Trophy was a one-day cricket competition in the United Kingdom. It was one of the four tournaments in which the eighteen first-class counties competed each season. They were joined by teams from Scotland and Ireland. Lan ...
to help Leicestershire beat
Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated ''Lancs'') is a ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Cumbria to the north, North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Greater Manchester and Merseyside to the south, and the Irish Sea to ...
by seven wickets.
Derbyshire County Cricket Club Derbyshire County Cricket Club is one of eighteen first-class county clubs within the domestic cricket structure of England and Wales. It represents the historic county of Derbyshire. Its limited overs team is called the Derbyshire Falco ...
signed Afridi to play for them in the first two months of the
2003 English cricket season The 2003 English cricket season was the 104th in which the County Championship had been an official competition. It was notable for the first official County Championship of the oldest county club, Sussex, and the first Twenty20 championship, th ...
.


Franchise career


IPL career

Afridi was signed by
Deccan Chargers Deccan Chargers (also sometimes known as the Chargers) is a defunct cricket franchise that competed in the Indian Premier League. It was based in the city of Hyderabad. The franchise was one of the eight inaugural members of the IPL in 2008 and ...
, and played in the inaugural season of the IPL. He could only score 81 runs in 10 matches and picked up 9 wickets in the tournament. He did not play in the 2nd edition of IPL due to the tense atmosphere after the
2008 Mumbai attacks The 2008 Mumbai attacks, also referred to as 26/11 attacks, were a series of coordinated Islamic terrorism, Islamist terrorist attacks that took place in November 2008, when 10 members of Lashkar-e-Taiba, a Pakistan-based Islamist terrorist o ...
.


Pakistan Super League

In the 2016 PSL, Afridi was a part of the franchise
Peshawar Zalmi Peshawar Zalmi (; ; literally meaning "Peshawar's youth") is a Pakistani franchise Twenty20 cricket team which plays in the Pakistan Super League and represents Peshawar, the capital city of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. The team is owned b ...
as
captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...
and as their icon player. After the end of the 1st season, Afridi was made the president of
Peshawar Zalmi Peshawar Zalmi (; ; literally meaning "Peshawar's youth") is a Pakistani franchise Twenty20 cricket team which plays in the Pakistan Super League and represents Peshawar, the capital city of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. The team is owned b ...
. Afridi stepped down as Peshawar Zalmi captain before the start of the 2017 PSL and gave the captaincy to
Daren Sammy Daren Julius Garvey Sammy SLC N.Pk (born 20 December 1983) is a Saint Lucian cricketer who played international cricket for the West Indies. He is currently serving as the head coach of the West Indies cricket team in limited overs cricket. ...
. Peshawar went on to win the title. After the end of the second season, Afridi left Peshawar Zalmi. Afridi joined
Karachi Kings Karachi Kings (; ) is a Pakistani professional franchise Twenty20 cricket team that competes in the Pakistan Super League (PSL). The team is based in Karachi, the provincial capital of Sindh, and was formed in 2015 by the Pakistan Cricket Boar ...
for the 2018 PSL and was also made the President of Karachi Kings. He also transferred to Karachi as a player ahead of PSL drafts. Afridi left Karachi after they didn't retain him for the 2019 PSL. In the 2019 PSL draft, Afridi was picked by the
Multan Sultans Multan Sultans is a Pakistani professional Twenty20 franchise cricket team representing Multan, a city in southern Punjab, in the Pakistan Super League (PSL). The team was founded in 2017 as an additional sixth team added to the PSL with contra ...
in the platinum category. During the 2020 PSL draft, Multan Sultans retained Afridi as a mentor. He was retained by
Multan Sultans Multan Sultans is a Pakistani professional Twenty20 franchise cricket team representing Multan, a city in southern Punjab, in the Pakistan Super League (PSL). The team was founded in 2017 as an additional sixth team added to the PSL with contra ...
again prior to the 2021 PSL. Afridi played the initial part of the 2021 PSL but missed the remainder of the rescheduled tournament due to a back injury. For the
2022 PSL 2022 Pakistan Super League (referred to as HBL PSL 7 for sponsorship reasons) was the seventh season of the Pakistan Super League, a franchise Twenty20 cricket league which was established by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) in 2015. The tournam ...
, Afridi played for
Quetta Gladiators Quetta Gladiators (Urdu, Balochi: ) is a Pakistani professional Twenty20 cricket franchise that competes in the Pakistan Super League (PSL). They play most home games at the Gaddafi Stadium. The Gladiators won and became the champions in PSL ...
in what he announced would be his last PSL season. He later withdrew mid-season due to back problems.


Other Leagues

In June 2004, Afridi signed with English county side
Kent Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...
to play for them in three
Twenty20 Twenty20 (abbreviated T20) is a shortened format of cricket. At the professional level, it was introduced by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) in 2003 for the county cricket, inter-county competition. In a Twenty20 game, the two t ...
matches and one
Totesport League The NatWest Pro40 League was a one-day cricket league for first-class cricket counties in England and Wales. It was inaugurated in 1999, but was essentially the old Sunday League retitled to reflect large numbers of matches being played on day ...
match. Afridi played for
Southern Redbacks The South Australia men's cricket team is an Australian men's professional first-class cricket team based in the state of South Australia. South Australia play their home matches at Adelaide Oval and Karen Rolton Oval, they are the state cri ...
in the
2009–10 KFC Twenty20 Big Bash The 2009–10 KFC Twenty20 Big Bash is the fifth season of the KFC Twenty20 Big Bash, the official Twenty20 domestic cricket competition in Australia. Six teams representing six states in Australia are participating in the competition. The competi ...
. He was part of Ruhuna Royals in 2012 Sri Lanka Premier League but he returned to Pakistan midway through the tournament to attend his ailing wife. In January 2015, Afridi was signed by Northamptonshire Steelbacks for the
2015 T20 Blast The 2015 NatWest T20 Blast was the thirteenth edition of the T20 Blast, the English and Welsh Twenty20 cricket competition. The competition ran from 15 May 2015 to Finals Day at Edgbaston Cricket Ground, Edgbaston on 29 August. The competition wa ...
where he reached to the final. In 2016, his services were acquired by
Rangpur Riders Rangpur Riders (), is a professional franchise cricket team based in Rangpur. The Riders compete in Bangladesh Premier League (BPL), the premier cricket league in Bangladesh. This team took part in 2024 Global Super League and became the cha ...
for the fourth edition of
Bangladesh Premier League Bangladesh Premier League (), also known as Dutch-Bangla Bank BPL for sponsorship reasons, is a professional Twenty20 cricket league in Bangladesh organised by the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB). It was formed in 2011 by the BCB, after the su ...
. Shahid Afridi was part of the
St Kitts and Nevis Patriots The St Kitts & Nevis Patriots are a Caribbean Premier League (CPL) cricket franchise based in Saint Kitts and Nevis that participated in the competition for the first time in 2015 Caribbean Premier League, 2015. The team plays its home games at ...
in the third season of the
Caribbean Premier League The Caribbean Premier League (abbreviated to CPL or CPLT20) is an annual Twenty20 cricket tournament held in the Caribbean. It was founded by Cricket West Indies in 2013 to replace the Caribbean Twenty20 as the premier Twenty20 competition in ...
. He was included in the squad of
Jamaica Tallawahs The franchise Jamaica Tallawahs was the representative team of Jamaica in the Caribbean Premier League of cricket. It was one of the six teams created in 2013 for the inaugural season of the tournament. In December 2023, it was announced that ...
for the
sixth edition Sixth is the ordinal form of the number six. * The Sixth Amendment, to the U.S. Constitution * A keg of beer, equal to 5 U.S. gallons or barrel * The fraction Music * Sixth interval (music)s: ** major sixth, a musical interval ** minor sixth ...
of
Caribbean Premier League The Caribbean Premier League (abbreviated to CPL or CPLT20) is an annual Twenty20 cricket tournament held in the Caribbean. It was founded by Cricket West Indies in 2013 to replace the Caribbean Twenty20 as the premier Twenty20 competition in ...
but pulled out before the start of the tournament due to knee injury. In 2018, Afridi was chosen as an icon player and captain by the Paktia Panthers in the first season of
Afghanistan Premier League The Afghanistan Premier League (; ), officially Gulbahar Afghanistan Premier League for sponsorship reasons, was a Twenty20 cricket franchise tournament run by the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB), held in the United Arab Emirates.) The only tour ...
. In June 2019, he was selected to play for the Brampton Wolves franchise team in the
2019 Global T20 Canada The 2019 Global T20 Canada was the second edition of the Global T20 Canada, a professional Twenty20 cricket tournament that was played at the CAA Centre, Brampton in Ontario, Canada. It started on 25 July 2019, and concluded with the final on ...
tournament. In July 2019, he was selected to play for the Belfast Titans in the inaugural edition of the
Euro T20 Slam The euro (symbol: €; currency code: EUR) is the official currency of 20 of the member states of the European Union. This group of states is officially known as the euro area or, more commonly, the eurozone. The euro is divided into 100 ...
cricket tournament. However, the following month the tournament was cancelled. For the
sixth edition Sixth is the ordinal form of the number six. * The Sixth Amendment, to the U.S. Constitution * A keg of beer, equal to 5 U.S. gallons or barrel * The fraction Music * Sixth interval (music)s: ** major sixth, a musical interval ** minor sixth ...
of
Bangladesh Premier League Bangladesh Premier League (), also known as Dutch-Bangla Bank BPL for sponsorship reasons, is a professional Twenty20 cricket league in Bangladesh organised by the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB). It was formed in 2011 by the BCB, after the su ...
, he was included in the A+ category and was signed by
Comilla Victorians Comilla Victorians () is a Bangladeshi professional men's cricket team which competed in the Bangladesh Premier League, a T-20 cricket league. The team is based in Cumilla, a city in eastern Bangladesh. Comilla Victorians won the BPL title 4 ti ...
. In November 2019, he was selected to play for the
Dhaka Platoon The Dhaka Capitals is a professional franchise cricket team that plays in the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL). They represent Dhaka Division. The team plays their home matches at the SBNCS. Dhaka is one of the most successful BPL franchises, h ...
in the
2019–20 Bangladesh Premier League The Bangladesh Premier League 2019–20, also known as BPL Season 7 or Bangabandhu BPL Presented by AKASH DTH and Powered by TVS (for sponsorship reasons), was the seventh season of the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL), the top level profession ...
. In October 2020, he was drafted by the
Galle Gladiators Galle Marvels, formerly known as Galle Titans and Galle Gladiators, is a Sri Lankan franchise professional Twenty20 cricket team that competes in the Lanka Premier League, Sri Lanka and represents the city of Galle, Southern Province. Ahead of ...
for the inaugural edition of the
Lanka Premier League The Lanka Premier League (abbreviated as LPL; , ) is a professional franchise cricket league established in 2020 in Sri Lanka. Matches are played using the Twenty20 cricket format by five teams named after Sri Lankan cities. The league was int ...
. In July 2021, he was picked by
Rawalakot Hawks Rawalakot Hawks () is a Pakistani professional T20 franchise cricket team competes in the Kashmir Premier League. They are captained by Ahmed Shehzad and coached by Arshad Khan. The franchise represents Rawalakot, the capital of Poonch distr ...
for the
first edition The bibliographical definition of an edition is all copies of a book printed from substantially the same setting of type, including all minor typographical variants. First edition According to the definition of ''edition'' above, a book pr ...
of the Kashmir Premier League. He was also announced as the Brand Ambassador of the KPL. Initially he was picked by
Muzaffarabad Tigers The Muzaffarabad Tigers (Urdu: ) is a Pakistani professional T20 franchise cricket team that competes in the Kashmir Premier League. It was founded in 2021 in the inaugural edition of Kashmir Premier League. The team is captained by Mohammad ...
but later he parted ways with
Muzaffarabad Tigers The Muzaffarabad Tigers (Urdu: ) is a Pakistani professional T20 franchise cricket team that competes in the Kashmir Premier League. It was founded in 2021 in the inaugural edition of Kashmir Premier League. The team is captained by Mohammad ...
to join
Rawalakot Hawks Rawalakot Hawks () is a Pakistani professional T20 franchise cricket team competes in the Kashmir Premier League. They are captained by Ahmed Shehzad and coached by Arshad Khan. The franchise represents Rawalakot, the capital of Poonch distr ...
and led the team to the title. On 26 July 2021, Afridi was signed by
Kathmandu Kings XI Kathmandu Kings XI was a professional franchise cricket team based in the capital city of Nepal, Kathmandu. It was one of the major franchises in the Everest Premier League. Management The team was owned by Rohit Gupta, as of 2017. As of 2017, ...
to play in Nepal's
Everest Premier League Everest Premier League (EPL) () was a franchise Twenty20 cricket tournament organized by EPL Pvt. Ltd., a private group in Nepal. It was the biggest cricket tournament in the country, played during the northern winter calendar, mostly in the ...
. For the 2022 KPL, Afridi joined
Jammu Janbaz Jammu Janbaz (Urdu: ) is a Pakistani franchise cricket team that competes in the Kashmir Premier League. It was founded in 2022 after the inaugural edition of Kashmir Premier League. The franchise is owned by Ghulam Hussain Shahid. The franch ...
as a
mentor Mentorship is the patronage, influence, guidance, or direction given by a mentor. A mentor is someone who teaches or gives help and advice to a less experienced and often younger person. In an organizational setting, a mentor influences the perso ...
. Jammu Janbaz finished 5th and were eliminated in the group stage. In June 2022, he joined Mardan Warriors as a mentor for the inaugural season of Pakistan Junior League.


T10 franchise career

In 2017, Afridi was announced as the brand ambassador of newly inaugurated
T10 League The Abu Dhabi T10 also known as T10 League, is a T10 cricket league in the United Arab Emirates launched and owned by T Ten Sports Management. The league is approved by the Emirates Cricket Board. The matches are 10-overs-a-side and the dur ...
in UAE. He was also signed by Team Pakhtoons and was given the captaincy. He was signed by Qalandars in 2020 as the icon player for the franchise. He had previously signed a similar deal in 2019 but the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) decided against issuing NOCs to Pakistan players for the tournament. Afridi was chosen as the brand ambassador for the Qatar Premier T10 Cricket League (QPL) which was launched in 2019 by
Qatar Cricket Association Qatar Cricket Association is the official Sport governing body, governing body of the sport of cricket in Qatar. Its current headquarters is located in Doha, Qatar. Qatar Cricket Association is Qatar's representative at the International Cricket ...
. He was signed by Bangla Tigers for the 2021–22 T10 League. In 2022 Afridi launched his own T10 league called the Mega Stars League.


International career


Early years

In October 1996, Afridi was drafted into the ODI team during the four-nation
Sameer Cup 1996–97 The Kenya Cricket Association Centenary Tournament (also known as the Sameer Cup) was a four team One Day International, ODI cricket tournament held in Kenya during the 1996–97 season. Squads Points table Group matches 1st match 2nd mat ...
as a replacement for the injured Mushtaq Ahmed. He made his debut on 2 October against
Kenya Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 52.4 million as of mid-2024, Kenya is the 27th-most-populous country in the world and the 7th most populous in Africa. ...
; however, he didn't bat and went wicketless. In the next match against
Sri Lanka Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...
, Afridi batted at number three in the role of a
pinch-hitter In baseball, a pinch hitter (PH) is a substitute batter. Batters can be substituted at any time while the ball is dead (not in active play); the manager may use any player who has not yet entered the game as a substitute. Unlike basketball, Am ...
. In his first international innings, Afridi broke the record for fastest century in ODI cricket, reaching his hundred from 37 balls. The eleven sixes he struck also equaled the record for most in an ODI innings. Pakistan posted a total of 371, at the time the second-highest in ODIs, and won by 82 runs; Afridi was named man of the match. The record for fastest century in ODI was broken by
New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...
cricketer Corey Anderson on 1 January 2014 who scored his century from 36 balls. Two years after his international debut, Afridi made his Test debut in the third game of a three-match series against Australia on 22 October 1998. By this point he had already played 66 ODIs, at the time a record before playing Tests. He opened the batting, making scores of 10 and 6, and took five wickets in the first innings. He played his second Test the following January during Pakistan's tour of India; it was the first Test between the two countries since 1990. Again opening the batting, Afridi scored his maiden Test century, scoring 141 runs from 191 balls. In the same match he also claimed three wickets for 54 runs. After winning the first match by 12 runs, Pakistan lost the second to draw the series.


Rise in significance

Afridi made his presence felt in the third Test against
India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
in March 2005, scoring a quick-fire second-innings half-century and taking five wickets in the match (including Tendulkar twice) to help
Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...
to win the game and register a series draw. In April, Afridi struck what at the time was the equal second-fastest century in ODIs; he reached 100 off 45 deliveries against India, sharing the record with West Indian
Brian Lara Brian Charles Lara, (born 2 May 1969) is a Trinidadian former international cricketer, widely renowned as one of the greatest Batting (cricket), batsmen of all time. He holds several cricketing records, including the record for the highest in ...
. Afridi was more consistent with his batting and bowling throughout 2005. Pakistan's coach,
Bob Woolmer Robert Andrew Woolmer (14 May 1948 – 18 March 2007) was an English cricket coach, cricketer, and a commentator. He played in 19 Test matches and six One Day Internationals for the England cricket team and later coached South Africa, Warwicksh ...
, helped Afridi to reach a fuller potential by improving his shot selection and giving him free rein over his batting attitude. On 21 November 2005, Shahid Afridi was banned for a Test match and two ODIs for deliberately damaging the pitch in the second match of the three-
Test Test(s), testing, or TEST may refer to: * Test (assessment), an educational assessment intended to measure the respondents' knowledge or other abilities Arts and entertainment * ''Test'' (2013 film), an American film * ''Test'' (2014 film) ...
series against England. Television cameras pictured him scraping his boots on the pitch scuffing the surface when play was held up after a gas canister exploded. Afridi later pleaded guilty to a level three breach of the ICC code of conduct relating to the spirit of the game. Match referee
Roshan Mahanama Deshabandu Roshan Siriwardene Mahanama (, ; born 31 May 1966) is a former Sri Lankan cricketer and a former ICC match referee. He was a key member for 1996 Cricket World Cup winning team for Sri Lanka. He is the first man to have stood as a ma ...
said: "This ban should serve as a message to players that this type of behaviour is not allowed." On 12 April 2006, Afridi announced a temporary retirement from Test cricket so that he could concentrate on ODIs, with a particular focus on the 2007 World Cup, and to spend more time with his family. He said he would consider reversing his decision after the World Cup. Afridi had played ten Tests since being recalled to the side in January 2005, averaging 47.44 with the bat including four centuries. However, on 27 April he reversed his decision, saying that " oolmertold me that I am one of the main players in the team and squad and that Pakistan really needed me". Before Pakistan toured England in July to September, Afridi played for
Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...
as an overseas player in the
C&G Trophy The Friends Provident Trophy was a one-day cricket competition in the United Kingdom. It was one of the four tournaments in which the eighteen first-class counties competed each season. They were joined by teams from Scotland and Ireland. Lan ...
. In six matches, he scored 128 runs and took seven wickets. England won the four-match Test series 3–0; Afridi played two matches, scoring 49 runs and took three wickets. It was the last Test cricket Afridi played until 2010. Afridi was charged on 8 February 2007 of bringing the game into disrepute after he was seen on camera thrusting his bat at a spectator who swore at him on his way up the steps after being dismissed. Afridi was given a four-game ODI suspension, the minimum possible ban for such an offence, meaning that he would miss Pakistan's first two 2007 World Cup matches. The PCB and Afridi chose not to appeal the ban, despite feeling that the punishment was excessively harsh. In the
2007 World Twenty20 The 2007 ICC World Twenty20 was the inaugural edition of the Men's T20 World Cup, formerly known as the ICC World Twenty20 that was contested in South Africa from 11 to 24 September 2007. Twelve teams took part in the thirteen-day tournament— ...
, he didn't perform well in terms of batting but ended the tournament as the joint-second highest wicket taker, earning the Man of the Series award. In the
final Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: *Final examination or finals, a test given at the end of a course of study or training *Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which d ...
he failed to take a wicket in the final and was out for a golden duck. He also became the first person to receive the Player of the Tournament award in T20 World Cup history. But in the next T20 World Cup, Afridi performed well, scoring 50 runs in the semi-final and 54 in the final which lead to Pakistan winning the World Cup.


Captaincy (2009–2011)

Shortly after Pakistan won the
2009 ICC World Twenty20 The 2009 ICC World Twenty20 was the second edition of the Men's T20 World Cup, formerly known as the ICC World Twenty20 that took place in England in June 2009. As before, the tournament featured 12 male teams – nine of the ten Test cricket, ...
, the captain:
Younis Khan Mohammad Younis Khan PP SI (Urdu: ; Pashto: ; born 29 November 1977) is a Pakistani professional cricket coach and former cricketer and captain of the Pakistan national cricket team in all three formats of the game, and is widely regarded as o ...
, announced his retirement from Twenty20 cricket. The
Pakistan Cricket Board The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), formerly known as Board of Control for Cricket in Pakistan (BCCP), is a sports governing body for cricket in Pakistan responsible for controlling and organising all tours and matches undertaken by the Pakistan ...
(PCB) subsequently announced that Shahid Afridi had taken over as captain in T20Is; the appointment was initially for one match, with a decision on the permanent replacement to be made later. His spell of 6–38 against Australia in 2010 was voted as the Best ODI Bowling Performance of 2009 by ESPNcricinfo. On 31 January 2010, Afridi was caught on camera biting into the ball towards the end of the 5th
Commonwealth Bank The Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA), also known as Commonwealth Bank or simply CommBank, is an Australian multinational bank with businesses across New Zealand, Asia, the United States, and the United Kingdom. It provides a variety of fi ...
ODI series in Australia. Later Afridi pleaded guilty to
ball tampering In the sport of cricket, ball tampering is an action in which a fielder illegally alters the condition of the ball. The primary motivation of ball tampering is to interfere with the aerodynamics of the ball to aid swing bowling. Definition Und ...
and he was banned from two
Twenty20 Twenty20 (abbreviated T20) is a shortened format of cricket. At the professional level, it was introduced by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) in 2003 for the county cricket, inter-county competition. In a Twenty20 game, the two t ...
internationals. In March 2010 the board announced that Shahid Afridi had been appointed ODI captain in place of the sacked Mohammad Yousuf. He led Pakistan in the
2010 Asia Cup The 2010 Asia Cup (also known as Micromax Asia Cup) was the tenth edition of the Asia Cup cricket tournament, which was held in Sri Lanka from 15 to 24 June 2010. Only the test playing nations India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh were taki ...
and during his first three matches as ODI captain he scored two centuries against Sri Lanka and Bangladesh he finished as the tournaments highest runscorer with 265 runs from 3 matches. On 25 May 2010, Afridi was appointed captain of the national team in all three formats, after he announced his return to Test cricket. In July 2010, Afridi captained Pakistan in the first Test of the series at
Lord's Lord's Cricket Ground, commonly known as Lord's, is a cricket List of Test cricket grounds, venue in St John's Wood, Westminster. Named after its founder, Thomas Lord, it is owned by Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) and is the home of Middlesex C ...
against Australia. He scored 31 off 15 deliveries in the first innings and 2 in the second but was dismissed succumbing to rash strokes in both the innings. After the match, he announced retirement from Test cricket again citing lack of temperament for Test cricket as the reason. Afridi was officially removed from the Test squad on the England tour, but after the spot-fixing scandal saw Mohammad Asif,
Mohammad Amir Mohammad Amir ( ; born 13 April 1992) is a Pakistani cricketer who played for the Pakistan national cricket team from 2008 to 2024. He plays for Quetta Gladiators in the Pakistan Super League. He is a left-arm fast bowler and a left-handed ...
and Test captain
Salman Butt Salman Butt ( Punjabi:سلمان بٹ; born 7 October 1984) is a former Pakistani cricketer and captain who played for Pakistan national cricket team between 2003 and 2010, before getting banned for five years for his involvement in a 2010 spo ...
temporarily suspended by the
International Cricket Council The International Cricket Council (ICC) is the global Sports governing body, governing body of cricket. It was founded as the Imperial Cricket Conference in 1909 by representatives from Australia, England, and South Africa. In 1965, the body wa ...
, he stated that he might return to Test cricket if "the team needs it". According to a representative of Afridi, he had voiced his concerns about Mazhar Majeed – who had approached Pakistan's players – in June. Majeed also confirmed that he approached Afridi, Abdul Razzaq,
Younis Khan Mohammad Younis Khan PP SI (Urdu: ; Pashto: ; born 29 November 1977) is a Pakistani professional cricket coach and former cricketer and captain of the Pakistan national cricket team in all three formats of the game, and is widely regarded as o ...
and
Saeed Ajmal Saeed Ajmal SI ( Punjabi, ; born 14 October 1977) is a Pakistani cricket coach and former cricketer who played all forms of the game. He is a right-arm off-spin bowler who bats right handed. At domestic level in Pakistan he represented Faisal ...
but all off them refused to be affiliated with him of his fixing menace. No disciplinary action was taken against them by the ICC. In October, Afridi stated in an interview with ''Express News'' that the squad for the series against South Africa had been selected without his consultation; the PCB gave him an official warning for the interview. Coach
Waqar Younis Waqar Younis Maitla HI ( Punjabi, ; born 16 November 1971) is a Pakistani cricket coach, commentator and former cricketer who captained Pakistan national cricket team. A right-arm fast bowler, he is widely regarded as one of the greatest bowle ...
also expressed his unhappiness at having no input in the selection; however, Mohsin Khan, the chief selector, defended the decision, stating, "it is not written down in the PCB constitution that the coach and captain(s) must have a say in the selection of any squad". Pakistan lost the series 3–2. The team toured New Zealand between December 2010 and February 2011 for two Tests, six ODIs, and three T20Is. Pakistan lost the first two T20Is but won the third; in final match Afridi became the first cricketer to reach 50 international wickets in the format. In the same match, he also became the first cricketer to have completed the double of 500 runs and 50 wickets in the T20 Internationals. When Pakistan's squad for the 2011 World Cup was announced no captain was named; Afridi, the incumbent ODI captain and
Misbah-ul-Haq Misbah-ul-Haq Pride of Performance, PP Sitara-e-Imtiaz, SI (; born 28 May 1974) is a former Pakistani cricket coach and former international cricketer. Misbah captained Pakistan national cricket team, Pakistan in all formats and is former head ...
, the Test captain, were the front runners for the position. Pakistan lost the first match against New Zealand by 8-wickets, the second match got rained out and in the third Mohammad Hafeez scored a century and Afridi scored a blistering 65 from just 25 balls. The following match was a tight game but Pakistan prevailed by two-wickets thanks to three boundaries from Sohail Tanvir, the match was set up by a 93 not out from Misbah-ul-Haq. The fifth ODI was won for Pakistan by 43 runs courtesy of a maiden ODI-century from Ahmed Shehzad. Afridi helped in the lower order by scoring 24 and taking two crucial top order wickets to help guide Pakistan to a 43-run victory and their first ODI series win in two years. After gaining victory as a captain against New Zealand, the PCB declared Shahid Afridi as Pakistan's captain for the 2011 World Cup. In Pakistan's opening match of the tournament, Afridi took 5 wickets for 16 runs against
Kenya Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 52.4 million as of mid-2024, Kenya is the 27th-most-populous country in the world and the 7th most populous in Africa. ...
, giving him the best bowling figures by a Pakistan bowler in a World Cup. In the following match against Sri Lanka, which Pakistan won, Afridi claimed four more wickets to help his side to victory and became the second player to have scored 4,000 runs and taken 300 wickets in ODIs. He claimed 17 wickets from 6 matches in the first round of the Cup, including a five-wicket haul against Canada, as Pakistan finished top of their group and progressed to the next stage. After beating the West Indies in the quarter-final, with Afridi taking four wickets, Pakistan were knocked out of the semi-finals in a 29-run defeat to India. Afridi was the tournament's joint-leading wicket-taker with 21 wickets, level with India's
Zaheer Khan Zaheer Khan (born 8 October 1978) (''Zaheer's official records say he was born in Shrirampur, Maharashtra on October 7. But as it turns out, his actual birth date is October 8, 1978'') is an Indian former professional cricketer who played all f ...
, even though Afridi had played one match less than him. Soon after the World Cup Pakistan toured the West Indies for a T20I, five ODIs, and two Tests. Pakistan lost the only T20I but won the ODI series that followed 3–2. Afridi took two wickets and scored 28 runs in the series. The coach, Waqar Younis, fell out with Afridi and in his report on the tour criticised Afridi, saying "as a captain he is very immature, has poor discipline, lacks a gameplan and is unwilling to listen to others' opinions or advice". After the series, on 19 May, the PCB replaced Afridi as ODI captain with Misbah-ul-Haq for the two-match ODI series against Ireland later that month. In 34 ODIs as captain, Afridi led his side to 18 wins and 15 defeats. Afridi subsequently withdrew from the touring squad, citing the illness of his father.


Conditional retirement and return (2011–2015)

On 30 May, Afridi announced his conditional retirement from international cricket in protest against his treatment by the
PCB PCB may refer to: Science and technology * Polychlorinated biphenyl, an organic chlorine compound, now recognized as an environmental toxin and classified as a persistent organic pollutant * Printed circuit board, a board used in electronics * P ...
. The condition on his return was that the board be replaced. The PCB suspended Afridi's central contract, fined him 4.5 million rupees ($52,300), and revoked his no-objection certificate (NOC) which allowed Afridi to play for Hampshire. Afridi filed a petition with the
Sindh High Court The High Court of Sindh () ( Sindhi: سنڌ ھائي ڪورٽ) is the highest judicial institution of the Pakistani province of Sindh. Established in 1906, the Court situated in the provincial capital at Karachi. Apart from being the highest ...
to overturn the sanctions. On 15 June, Afridi withdrew his petition after an out of court settlement and the PCB reinstated his NOC. When the PCB's central contracts were renewed in August, Afridi's was allowed to lapse. In October he withdrew his retirement as Ijaz Butt had been replaced as chairman of the PCB. Two weeks after his announcement, Afridi was included in Pakistan's squad to face Sri Lanka in three ODIs and a T20I. In November 2011, Afridi became the only cricketer to score a half-century and take five wickets on two separate occasions in ODIs. Afridi achieved this feat in the fourth ODI against Sri Lanka which helped Pakistan to secure the one-day series. He also became the first person to play 50 T20Is. In 2013 during the first ODI game against the West Indies in Guyana, Afridi scored 76(55) before taking figures of 7/12, the second best ODI bowling figures ever. In July 2014, he played for the Rest of the World side in the
Bicentenary Celebration match The Bicentenary Celebration match was a 50-over exhibition cricket match played on 5 July 2014 at Lord's Cricket Ground, London, to mark the 200th anniversary of the ground, which was first used in 1814 and is considered the "home of cricket". ...
at
Lord's Lord's Cricket Ground, commonly known as Lord's, is a cricket List of Test cricket grounds, venue in St John's Wood, Westminster. Named after its founder, Thomas Lord, it is owned by Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) and is the home of Middlesex C ...
. Afridi announced his retirement from ODI cricket after
2015 Cricket World Cup The 2015 ICC Cricket World Cup was the 11th Cricket World Cup, a quadrennial One Day International (ODI) cricket tournament contested by men's national teams and organised by the International Cricket Council (ICC). It was jointly hosted by Aust ...
. Pakistan lost to
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
in the quarter-final and got eliminated from the tournament.


2016 ICC World Twenty20

In March 2016, Pakistan was unable to make it to the semi-finals in the
2016 ICC World Twenty20 The 2016 ICC World Twenty20 was the sixth edition of the ICC Men's T20 World Cup, formerly known as the ICC World Twenty20, a Twenty20 International cricket tournament that was held in India from 8 March to 3 April 2016, and was the first edi ...
after losing to New Zealand, India and Australia. Before Australia's match, the PCB hinted at Afridi's retirement. However, he went against their decision after the match and announced that he would make the decision himself after consulting family and other iconic players beforehand and also announce it in Pakistan. He also stated that 'as a player, I am fit. As a captain, I am not fit'. Former Australian player
Ian Chappell Ian Michael Chappell (born 26 September 1943) is a former cricketer who played for South Australia and Australia. Known as "Chappelli", he is considered as one of the greatest captains the game has seen.
praised his honesty in this confession.
Waqar Younis Waqar Younis Maitla HI ( Punjabi, ; born 16 November 1971) is a Pakistani cricket coach, commentator and former cricketer who captained Pakistan national cricket team. A right-arm fast bowler, he is widely regarded as one of the greatest bowle ...
, the head coach, was initially blamed and he accepted responsibility and offered to retire. However, a six-page report by Younis was later leaked by the PCB to the media where he was shown to be pointing much of the blame onto Afridi. First Younis claimed that Afridi was 'unfair' to new cricketer Mohammad Nawaz by calling him up to bowl in the Asia Cup 2016 because it 'destroyed the youngster's confidence' after he gave 38-runs in 3 overs. Younis went on to accuse Afridi of being 'non-serious' in the game along with saying that he missed training sessions and meetings. He also said that Afridi showed poor performance with the bat, ball and as a captain and was clearly not listened to by other players. Younis expressed great anger on the report being leaked as it led to fans criticising him for shifting the blame onto Afridi instead of accepting equal responsibility. Manager
Intikhab Alam Intikhab Alam Khan (Urdu:; born 28 December 1941) is a Pakistani cricket coach and former cricketer who played in 47 Test matches and four One Day Internationals from 1959 to 1977. He captained Pakistan in 17 Tests between 1969 and 1975. He al ...
also called Afridi 'clueless' in the 3 matches but said Younis was unable to ensure that the players were physically fit. Afridi was asked to appear to the enquiry committee, made up of Misbah-ul-Haq and other iconic players, who would hear his view on the situation. However, it was said he refused to until it was revealed that his daughter was in hospital undergoing surgery at the time. He opted to be interviewed by phone. Days after the match, Afridi posted a video on Twitter, in which he apologised to all his fans for the team's disappointing performance. He said he didn't care about what others were saying about him and only wanted to answer to his fans and wanted to apologise for letting them and Pakistan down. Despite earlier criticism, many fans supported him. Even during his arrival from Dubai back to Pakistan, a few days after the rest of the team, fans chanted 'Boom Boom Afridi' at the airport amidst high security. In April 2016, he finally announced he was stepping down as T20I captain, but was not retiring. He said he wanted to "continue to play the game for my country".
Sarfraz Ahmed Sarfaraz Ahmed (; born 22 May 1987) is a Pakistani former cricketer who played for the Pakistani national cricket team between 2007 and 2023. He captained the Pakistan side in all formats from 2016 to 2019 and under his captaincy, Pakistan won ...
was appointed as Pakistan's T20I captain following Afridi's resignation.


Retirement

In September 2016, the PCB announced that they wanted Afridi to retire. Afridi said it was unfair for them to announce their plans in the media, but then said that he wanted a farewell match, which didn't happen as a result of him cancelling a meeting regarding the issue with the PCB. In February 2017, he announced his retirement from T20Is and international cricket. In April 2018, Afridi briefly returned to international cricket after he was named in the Rest of the World XI squad for the
Hurricane Relief T20 Challenge The Hurricane Relief T20 Challenge was a Twenty20 International (T20I) cricket match that took place in England on 31 May 2018. The West Indies cricket team played against a World XI team, to raise funds for stadiums damaged by Hurricane Irma a ...
. He went on to captain the side, after
Eoin Morgan Eoin Joseph Gerard Morgan (born 10 September 1986) is an Irish-born English former cricketer and current commentator. He captained the England cricket team in limited overs cricket from 2015 until his international retirement in June 2022. He ...
had to withdraw due to injury. After the match, Afridi stated that he would not be making a comeback to international cricket for Pakistan.


Post-retirement


Cricket administration

On 24 December 2022, Afridi was named the interim chief selector of the Pakistani cricket team by the newly appointed PCB Chairman,
Najam Sethi Najam Aziz Sethi ( Punjabi, Urdu: نجم عزیز سیٹھی; born 20 May 1948) is a Pakistani journalist, businessman and cricket administrator. He is the current chief executive officer (CEO) of Mitchell's. Previously, he served as the Chai ...
. His term lasted until the end of the New Zealand series with Pakistan drawing the Test series 0–0 and losing the ODI series 2–1. Sethi had offered him a longer term but Afridi refused due to his commitments to charity work and his foundation.


Business

In February 2022, Afridi opened a restaurant, Lala Darbar, in Dubai, which he described as an "authentic desi restaurant chain". In 2023, Afridi launched the Shahid Afridi Store, a menswear
fashion Fashion is a term used interchangeably to describe the creation of clothing, footwear, Fashion accessory, accessories, cosmetics, and jewellery of different cultural aesthetics and their mix and match into Clothing, outfits that depict distinct ...
brand.


Playing style


Batting

His general style of batting was very aggressive and attack oriented. Due to this reason, Indian cricketer
Ravi Shastri Ravishankar Jayadritha Shastri (born 27 May 1962) is an Indian cricket commentator, former professional cricketer and head coach of the India national cricket team. As a player, he played for the India national cricket team between 1981 and 199 ...
gave him the nickname "Boom Boom". He scored six ODI centuries, including ones made from 37 and 45 balls, two of the fastest in history. Throughout his career, he had an ODI strike rate of 117 runs per 100 balls, one of the highest in the game's history. This attitude was transferred to Test cricket as well, with Afridi scoring at a relatively high strike rate of 86.97. He was known for hitting long sixes. He holds the record for having hit the most sixes in the history of ODI cricket. However, his aggressive style increased his risk of getting out and he was regarded as an inconsistent batsmen. This is reflected by the fact that he is the only player to score more than 8,000 ODI runs at an average under 30 (23.57 to be exact). Afridi has moved about the batting order, and this lack of consistency has made it difficult for him to settle. In the
Indian subcontinent The Indian subcontinent is a physiographic region of Asia below the Himalayas which projects into the Indian Ocean between the Bay of Bengal to the east and the Arabian Sea to the west. It is now divided between Bangladesh, India, and Pakista ...
, where the ball quickly loses its shine, he preferred to open the batting; however, elsewhere he would come to bat at number six or seven. On 22 August 2017, in his 256th Twenty20 match, Afridi hit his first century in the format, scoring 101 for
Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Berkshire to the north, Surrey and West Sussex to the east, the Isle of Wight across the Solent to the south, ...
in the
2017 NatWest t20 Blast The 2017 NatWest T20 Blast was the fifteenth edition of the T20 Blast, a professional domestic T20 competition league in England and Wales run by the ECB. The league consisted of the 18 first-class county teams divided into two divisions of nine ...
against
Derbyshire Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It borders Greater Manchester, West Yorkshire, and South Yorkshire to the north, Nottinghamshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south-east, Staffordshire to the south a ...
and setting the highest T20 score by a batsman at the County Ground, Derby in the process.


Bowling

Having started as a fast bowler, Afridi decided to start bowling spin after he was told he was throwing. He modelled himself on Pakistan leg-spinner
Abdul Qadir Abd al-Qadir or Abdulkadir () is a male Muslim given name. It is formed from the Arabic words '' Abd'', ''al-'' and '' Qadir''. The name means 'servant of who can do everything'. ''Al-Qādir'' is one of the names of Allah in the Qur'an, which ...
. Afridi began his career as primarily a bowler, but after scoring the fastest century in his maiden ODI innings more was expected of him with the bat. In 2011, he said, "I consider myself a bowler first". He took 541 International
wicket In the sport of cricket, the term wicket has several meanings: * It is either of the two sets of three Stump (cricket), stumps and two Bail (cricket), bails at each end of the Cricket pitch, pitch. The Fielding (cricket), fielding team's playe ...
s in his career, most of which were from the ODI format. While his stock ball is the
leg break Leg spin is a type of spin bowling in cricket. A bowler who uses this technique is called a leg spinner. Leg spinners bowl with their right-arm and a wrist spin action. The leg spinner's normal delivery is called a leg break, which spins from ...
, his armoury also includes the googly and a "quicker one" which he can deliver in the style of a medium-pacer, reaching speeds of around . On 23 August 2018, after a match winning all-round performance in the
Caribbean Premier League The Caribbean Premier League (abbreviated to CPL or CPLT20) is an annual Twenty20 cricket tournament held in the Caribbean. It was founded by Cricket West Indies in 2013 to replace the Caribbean Twenty20 as the premier Twenty20 competition in ...
for
Barbados Tridents The Barbados Royals (previously known as the Barbados Tridents) are the representative franchise cricket team of Barbados in the Caribbean Premier League. They are one of the six teams specifically created in 2013 for the inaugural season o ...
, Australian cricketer Steve Smith said that he tried to model the bowling action of Afridi. He praised Afridi, calling him "a terrific leg-spinner". Afghani cricketer
Rashid Khan Rashid Khan Arman (; born 20 September 1998) is an Afghan international cricketer and captain of the Afghanistan national team in the T20I format. In franchise leagues, he plays for Gujarat Titans in the Indian Premier League (IPL), Adelaide ...
has said that he grew up idolising Afridi and modelled Afridi's bowling action.


Philanthropy

In March 2014, Shahid Afridi established the Shahid Afridi Foundation which aims to provide healthcare and education facilities in Pakistan. He was named among the world's most charitable athletes by Do Something in August 2015.
UNICEF UNICEF ( ), originally the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund, officially United Nations Children's Fund since 1953, is an agency of the United Nations responsible for providing Humanitarianism, humanitarian and Development a ...
and many Pakistani authorities have taken Shahid Afridi on board for the anti-polio campaign in the tribal belt of Waziristan region.


Awards and recognition

On 23 March 2010, Afridi was awarded the
Pride of Performance The Pride of Performance (), officially known as the Presidential Pride of Performance, is an award bestowed by the Pakistan, Islamic Republic of Pakistan to recognize people with "notable achievements in the field of art, science, literature, sp ...
by President of Pakistan
Asif Ali Zardari Asif Ali Zardari (born 26 July 1955) is a Pakistani politician serving as the 14th president of Pakistan since 2024, having held the same office from 2008 to 2013. He is the president of Pakistan People's Party Parliamentarians and was the ...
. On 23 March 2018, he was awarded the
Sitara-i-Imtiaz The Sitara-e-Imtiaz () also spelled as Sitara-i-Imtiaz, is the third-highest (in the order of "Imtiaz") honour and Civil decorations of Pakistan, civilian award in the State of Pakistan. It recognizes individuals who have made an "especially me ...
by President of Pakistan
Mamnoon Hussain Mamnoon Hussain (; 23 December 1940 – 14 July 2021) was a Pakistani politician and industrialist who served as the 12th president of Pakistan from 2013 to 2018. He was first appointed Governor of Sindh in June 1999 by President Rafiq Tarar ...
.


Controversies

In July 2016, Afridi said in an interview with
BBC Urdu BBC Urdu () is a digital television station covering the Indian subcontinent in the Urdu language. It was the Urdu language station of the BBC World Service, accompanied by its website, which served as a news portal and provided online access to ...
that there is no talent in Pakistan. This resulted in huge opposition against Afridi, while PCB issued a notice against him. Later, Afridi tried to clarify his statement by explaining that there is no competition among players in the present. On 6 September 2018, in a
Defence Day Defence Day ( ALA-LC: ) is celebrated in Pakistan as a national day to commemorate the sacrifices made by Pakistani soldiers in defending its borders.Taha SiddiquiDear Pakistanis, this Defence Day, please stop celebrating hate Al Jazeera, 6 ...
event at
Rawalpindi Rawalpindi is the List of cities in Punjab, Pakistan by population, third-largest city in the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. It is a commercial and industrial hub, being the list of cities in P ...
, Afridi was reportedly caught on the camera
chewing tobacco Chewing tobacco is a type of smokeless tobacco, smokeless tobacco product that is placed between the cheek and lower Gums, gum to draw out its flavor. It consists of coarsely chopped aged tobacco that is flavored and often sweetened; it is not gr ...
. He was highly criticised by the media for this. However, Afridi denied these claims and clarified that he had been eating fennel seeds and clove. On 30 April 2019, Shahid Afridi was sued by Master Beverages for violating agreement. As per Master Beverages and Foods Limited, Shahid Afridi had signed a contract with Master Beverages as their brand ambassador, but also secretly signed an agreement to become a brand ambassador of another rival company. According to the agreement, Afridi couldn't sign for any other company. Master Beverages instituted a lawsuit against Afridi in
Sindh High Court The High Court of Sindh () ( Sindhi: سنڌ ھائي ڪورٽ) is the highest judicial institution of the Pakistani province of Sindh. Established in 1906, the Court situated in the provincial capital at Karachi. Apart from being the highest ...
for damages amounting to 60,000,000 and recovery of a car which Afridi received as part of the agreement. In May 2019, Afridi stated that being a "conservative" and religious father, he had banned his daughters from playing outdoor sports. He said "feminists can say what they want... I've made my decision," in response to the criticism.


Confusion about age

Shahid Afridi, who made his debut at 16 as per the records, had claimed that he was born in 1975 in his autobiography 'Game Changer'. "Also, for the record, I was just nineteen, and not sixteen like they claim. I was born in 1975. So, yes, the authorities stated my age incorrectly", he wrote in his book. Although that created confusion as if he was born in 1975, it would have meant that he was 21 at the time of debut and not 19 as he wrote. Afridi later clarified that his autobiography's first edition carried the wrong year and it was confirmed that his year of birth was 1977. Afridi's claims created further controversy as this would have meant that Afghani batsman,
Usman Ghani Usman Ghani (; born 20 November 1996) is an Afghan international cricketer. He is a right-handed opening batsman. Career Ghani made his debut in the 2014 Asian Cricket Council Premier League against Hong Kong at Bayuemas Oval, Kuala Lumpur on ...
, would hold the record for the youngest centurion in ODI cricket which Afridi currently holds.


Feud with Gautam Gambhir

Afridi has been infamously involved in several on and off the field feuds with Indian cricketer
Gautam Gambhir Gautam Gambhir (born 14 October 1981) is the Head coach of the Indian cricket team. He is also a former international cricketer, former politician, and philanthropist. He played for India in all formats of the game between 2003 and 2016. He w ...
. On 14 November 2007, during an ODI between India and Pakistan, Afridi and Gambhir were involved in an altercation, followed by a heated argument, where on-field umpire Ian Gould intervened in between. Both Afridi and Gambhir were fined for the event, for conduct unbecoming and physical contact. Afridi again came to feud with Gambhir on Twitter, when the former tweeted about the unrest in Kashmir in April 2018, where he also tagged the United Nations. In response to the tweet, Gambhir replied by mocking Afridi and stated that he has no understanding about Kashmir. In response to criticism of Prime Minister
Narendra Modi Narendra Damodardas Modi (born 17 September 1950) is an Indian politician who has served as the Prime Minister of India, prime minister of India since 2014. Modi was the chief minister of Gujarat from 2001 to 2014 and is the Member of Par ...
by Afridi in May 2020, Gambhir stated by tweeting that "Jokers like Afridi, Imran and Bajwa can spew venom against India & PM @narendramodi ji to fool Pak ppl but won't get Kashmir till judgment day! Remember Bangladesh?".


In popular culture

Irish pop group The Duckworth Lewis Method included a song called "Boom Boom Afridi" in their second album "
Sticky Wickets The Duckworth Lewis Method are a cricket (sport), cricket-themed Irish pop group formed by Neil Hannon of The Divine Comedy (band), The Divine Comedy and Thomas Walsh of Pugwash (band), Pugwash. The Duckworth Lewis Method is also the title of ...
".


Bibliography

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Notes


References


External links


Shahid Afridi Foundation
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Afridi, Shahid 1977 births Living people
Shahid ''Shahid'' ( ,   ,   ) denotes a martyr in Islam. The word is used frequently in the Quran in the generic sense of "witness" but only once in the sense of "martyr" (i.e. one who dies for his faith); the latter sense acq ...
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