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Shahid Afridi

Cricketer · Former captain

b. 1977 · Born in Tirah, Khyber Agency, Pakistan · 4 min read

  • Verified: 13 November 2026
  • Sources: 6
  • Independently reviewed
Shahid Afridi in 2017, in a Pakistan team shirt
Photo: Shehbaz Sharif / Wikimedia Commons , CC BY 2.0

Pakistani all-rounder Shahid Afridi, 'Boom Boom', hit a 37-ball ODI century in 1996, won the 2009 T20 World Cup, and took 541 international wickets.

Early Life

Sahibzada Mohammad Shahid Khan Afridi was born on 1 March 1977 in Tirah, in what was then the Khyber Agency of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas, now Khyber District, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan, into an Afridi tribe of Pashtuns. His birth year was long disputed: official records gave 1980, his 2019 autobiography Game Changer stated 1975, and a source close to Afridi later said the 1975 date was a publishing error and confirmed 1977, the date now used by Wikipedia and ESPNcricinfo. He was the fifth oldest of six brothers and five sisters, and he credits an uncle, a colonel in the Pakistan Army, with introducing him to sport. He has said the 1992 World Cup, and Imran Khan's captaincy in it, defined his cricket and taught him never to be afraid of failure. He came through the under-19 circuit and fine performances for Karachi Whites, for whom he took 42 wickets in five matches in one season, and was fast-tracked into the senior side at 19.

Career

Afridi was drafted into Pakistan's one-day side during the Sameer Cup in Nairobi in October 1996 as a replacement for the injured Mushtaq Ahmed. He made his debut against Kenya on 2 October 1996 without batting, then in his next match, against Sri Lanka, he was sent in at number three as a pinch-hitter and scored the 37-ball century that made him famous. He made his Test debut against Australia on 22 October 1998, taking five wickets in the first innings, and his Twenty20 international debut against England on 28 August 2006. He was Player of the Tournament at the 2007 T20 World Cup and starred in Pakistan's 2009 T20 World Cup win. After Younis Khan retired from Twenty20 internationals, Afridi was appointed captain in that format, and in 2010 he became Pakistan's one-day captain and briefly its Test captain, retiring from Tests after one match in charge. He led Pakistan to the 2011 World Cup semi-final, was removed as one-day captain later that year, and retired from one-day cricket in 2015. He stepped down as Twenty20 captain after the 2016 World T20 and announced his retirement from international cricket on 19 February 2017, before a final farewell appearance captaining a World XI against West Indies on 31 May 2018. He later served as Pakistan's interim chief selector in 2022-23.

Achievements

Afridi's career was built on match-winning bursts with bat and ball. In only his second one-day international, against Sri Lanka at Nairobi on 4 October 1996, he scored 102 off 40 balls, reaching his century in 37 balls, then the fastest in one-day international history, a record that stood for over 17 years. He took 541 international wickets, 395 of them in one-day internationals, and scored 11,196 international runs. He was Player of the Tournament at the 2007 T20 World Cup and Player of the Match in the 2009 T20 World Cup final, scoring an unbeaten 54 and taking 1 for 20 as Pakistan beat Sri Lanka by eight wickets. As captain at the 2011 World Cup he was the tournament's joint-leading wicket-taker with 21 wickets and led Pakistan to the semi-final. He hit 351 sixes in one-day internationals, the most by any batter for 15 years, and he is the only player with more than 8,000 one-day runs and 350 one-day wickets.

  • Scored a century in 37 balls against Sri Lanka at Nairobi in 1996, then the fastest century in one-day international history, a record that stood for over 17 years
  • Took 541 wickets in international cricket: 48 in Tests, 395 in one-day internationals and 98 in Twenty20 internationals
  • Scored 11,196 international runs, including six one-day international centuries and five Test centuries
  • Player of the Match in the 2009 T20 World Cup final, scoring an unbeaten 54 and taking 1 for 20 as Pakistan beat Sri Lanka
  • Player of the Tournament at the 2007 T20 World Cup, where Pakistan reached the final
  • Joint-leading wicket-taker at the 2011 Cricket World Cup with 21 wickets, captaining Pakistan to the semi-final
  • Hit 351 sixes in one-day internationals, the most by any batter for 15 years until Rohit Sharma passed him in November 2025
  • Captained Pakistan in all three formats and won the 2012 Asia Cup as captain

Legacy

Afridi is remembered as one of Pakistan's great limited-overs match-winners and as the most destructive hitter of his era. His 37-ball century remains one of the most famous innings in one-day history, and his 351 one-day sixes stood as a record for 15 years. As a leg-spinner he reinvented himself from a pinch-hitting teenager into a frontline bowler who led the 2011 World Cup wicket charts, and his 395 one-day wickets place him among the leading wicket-takers in the format. Beyond cricket he runs the Shahid Afridi Foundation, which works on education and healthcare in Pakistan, and he has worked with UNICEF on the anti-polio campaign. His nickname Boom Boom captures the style that made him a crowd favourite for two decades.

Contributions

Afridi changed what a lower-order player could do in one-day cricket. He arrived as a leg-spinner picked to fill in, was sent in as a pinch-hitter in his second match, and produced the fastest century the format had seen, showing teams that a bowler could win a match with the bat in forty balls. He then built a second career as a genuine all-rounder, taking nearly 400 one-day wickets with a fast, flat leg-spin and scoring more than 8,000 one-day runs. His big hitting set a new standard for six-hitting in one-day cricket, and his 351 sixes stood as the record for 15 years. As captain he led Pakistan to a World Cup semi-final and a T20 World Cup title, and his foundation work after retirement extended his influence beyond the field.

Notable Works

  • Pakistan national cricket team (1996-2016)
  • 37-ball century against Sri Lanka, Nairobi, 1996
  • 2009 ICC T20 World Cup winner, Player of the Match in the final
  • 2011 Cricket World Cup semi-final as captain
  • Shahid Afridi Foundation

Milestones

  • 1977 — Born on 1 March in Tirah, Khyber Agency, Pakistan Source: Wikipedia (Shahid Afridi)
  • 1996 — Made his one-day international debut and scored a 37-ball century against Sri Lanka, then the fastest in one-day history Source: Wikipedia (Shahid Afridi)
  • 1998 — Made his Test debut against Australia, taking five wickets in the first innings Source: Wikipedia (Shahid Afridi)
  • 2006 — Made his Twenty20 international debut against England Source: Wikipedia (Shahid Afridi)
  • 2007 — Named Player of the Tournament at the T20 World Cup Source: Wikipedia (Shahid Afridi)
  • 2009 — Player of the Match in the T20 World Cup final as Pakistan beat Sri Lanka to win the title Source: Wikipedia (Shahid Afridi)
  • 2010 — Appointed Pakistan's one-day captain and briefly its Test captain Source: Wikipedia (Shahid Afridi)
  • 2011 — Captained Pakistan to the World Cup semi-final and finished as the tournament's joint-leading wicket-taker with 21 wickets Source: Wikipedia (Shahid Afridi); ICC
  • 2015 — Retired from one-day international cricket Source: Wikipedia (Shahid Afridi)
  • 2017 — Announced his retirement from international cricket Source: Wikipedia (Shahid Afridi)
  • 2018 — Captained a World XI in the Hurricane Relief T20 Challenge, his final international appearance Source: Wikipedia (Shahid Afridi)

Timeline

  1. 1 March 1977

    Born in Tirah, Khyber Agency, Pakistan

    Source: Wikipedia (Shahid Afridi)
  2. 2 October 1996

    Made his one-day international debut against Kenya at Nairobi

    Source: Wikipedia (Shahid Afridi)
  3. 4 October 1996

    Scored 102 off 40 balls against Sri Lanka at Nairobi, reaching his century in 37 balls, then the fastest in one-day history

    Source: Wikipedia (Shahid Afridi)
  4. 22 October 1998

    Made his Test debut against Australia at Karachi, taking five wickets in the first innings

    Source: Wikipedia (Shahid Afridi)
  5. 28 August 2006

    Made his Twenty20 international debut against England at Bristol

    Source: Wikipedia (Shahid Afridi)
  6. 24 September 2007

    Named Player of the Tournament at the T20 World Cup, where Pakistan lost the final to India

    Source: Wikipedia (Shahid Afridi)
  7. 21 June 2009

    Player of the Match in the T20 World Cup final at Lord's as Pakistan beat Sri Lanka to win the title

    Source: Wikipedia (Shahid Afridi)
  8. 2010

    Appointed Pakistan's one-day captain and briefly its Test captain

    Year only — exact date unknown Source: Wikipedia (Shahid Afridi)
  9. 30 March 2011

    Captained Pakistan in the World Cup semi-final against India at Mohali, finishing as the tournament's joint-leading wicket-taker with 21 wickets

    Source: Wikipedia (Shahid Afridi); ICC
  10. 20 March 2015

    Played his last one-day international, against Australia in the World Cup quarter-final at Adelaide, and retired from the format

    Source: Wikipedia (Shahid Afridi)
  11. 19 February 2017

    Announced his retirement from international cricket

    Source: Wikipedia (Shahid Afridi)
  12. 31 May 2018

    Captained a World XI against West Indies in the Hurricane Relief T20 Challenge at Lord's, his final international appearance

    Source: Wikipedia (Shahid Afridi)

Frequently Asked Questions

How old is Shahid Afridi?

Shahid Afridi was born on 1 March 1977 in Tirah, Pakistan, so Afridi is 49 years old as of November 2026. Afridi's age changes every year on 1 March. His birth year was long disputed, with official records once giving 1980 and his autobiography suggesting 1975.

Source: Wikipedia (Shahid Afridi) ; ESPNcricinfo

Who is Shahid Afridi?

Sahibzada Mohammad Shahid Khan Afridi is a Pakistani former all-rounder and captain, known as Boom Boom for his explosive batting. He played 27 Tests, 398 one-day internationals and 99 Twenty20 internationals for Pakistan between 1996 and 2016. He captained Pakistan to the 2011 World Cup semi-final.

Source: Wikipedia (Shahid Afridi)

What was Afridi's 37-ball century?

In only his second one-day international, against Sri Lanka at Nairobi on 4 October 1996, Afridi scored 102 off 40 balls, reaching his century in 37 balls. It was then the fastest century in one-day international history and stood for over 17 years. He hit 11 sixes in the innings, equalling the record for one innings.

Source: Wikipedia (Shahid Afridi) ; ESPNcricinfo

What did Afridi achieve in the 2009 T20 World Cup?

Afridi was Player of the Match in the 2009 T20 World Cup final at Lord's, scoring an unbeaten 54 and taking 1 for 20 as Pakistan beat Sri Lanka by eight wickets. He had also starred in the semi-final against South Africa with an unbeaten 51. Pakistan's win was their first world title since 1992.

Source: Wikipedia (Shahid Afridi)

How many wickets did Shahid Afridi take?

Afridi took 541 wickets in international cricket: 48 in Tests, 395 in one-day internationals and 98 in Twenty20 internationals. He also scored 11,196 international runs, including six one-day centuries. He is the only player with more than 8,000 one-day runs and 350 one-day wickets.

Source: Wikipedia (Shahid Afridi)

Why is Afridi's birth year disputed?

Official records long gave Afridi's birth year as 1980, which would have made him 16 when he scored his 37-ball century in 1996. His 2019 autobiography Game Changer stated he was born in 1975, though its arithmetic did not add up. A source close to Afridi later said 1975 was a publishing error and confirmed 1977.

Source: ESPNcricinfo ; Sportstar

Sources & References

  1. Shahid Afridi — Wikipedia — Wikipedia (accessed 13 November 2026)
  2. Shahid Afridi reveals his real age in autobiography — ESPNcricinfo — ESPNcricinfo (accessed 13 November 2026)
  3. Shahid Afridi reveals his real age, born in 1975 and not 1980 — Sportstar — Sportstar (accessed 13 November 2026)
  4. ICC Cricket World Cup Leading Wicket-Takers — ICC — ICC (accessed 13 November 2026)
  5. Pakistan cricketer Shahid Afridi finally reveals his real age — The Economic Times — The Economic Times (accessed 13 November 2026)
  6. File:Shahid Afridi in 2017 (3x4 cropped).jpg — Wikimedia Commons (portrait file page) — Wikimedia Commons (accessed 13 November 2026)

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Written by Abdul Hannan. Independently reviewed before publication. First published 13 November 2026; last verified 13 November 2026.

Birth date: 1 March 1977 (Official records long gave 1 March 1980; his 2019 autobiography Game Changer stated 1975; a source close to Afridi later said the 1975 date was a publishing error and confirmed 1977, the date now used by Wikipedia and ESPNcricinfo.) · Date precision: exact.