Shahid Afridi Career highlights
On 4 October 1996, playing his maiden international innings, Afridi hit the fastest One-Day century off 37 balls against Sri Lanka in Nairobi. His innings included 28 runs off one of Sanath Jayasuriya's overs, whose record he broke.
* Youngest player in history to make an ODI century at just 16 years and 217 days with his 37 ball ton against Sri Lanka. It included 11 sixes and 6 fours.
* Made a half-century from 26 balls and took 3 second-innings wickets in Pakistan's series-drawing Test victory against India in March 2005.
* Holds the joint record with Brian Lara for the third fastest ODI century off 45 balls in April 2005 against India.This actually was the first match that witnessed the Indian cricketer-turned-commentator Ravi Shastri giving him the nickname Boom Boom Afridi.
* Highest aggregate sixes scored in the 50-over game, and he the most sixes per innings record.
* Scored four consecutive sixes off a Harbhajan Singh over in a Test match against India in January 2006, matching a feat that Kapil Dev achieved in 1990.
* Was the first player to score 12 runs off one ball, by hitting the roof of the Millennium Stadium. This took place in a game of Power Cricket.
* Holds four of the top eight fastest ODI half centuries, twice completed in 18 balls and twice in 20 balls. He has also scored a half century off just 21 balls.
* Made 32 runs off a Malinga Bandara over in an ODI game at Abu Dhabi in 2007. He struck four consecutive sixes and it was the 2nd most expensive over in ODI history.
* Is only the third player in ODI history to achieve the combination of 5000 runs and 200 wickets. The other players being Sri Lanka's Sanath Jayasuriya and South Africa's Jacques Kallis.
* On 21 June 2010, batting in the fifth match of the Asia Cup against Bangladesh in Dambulla, he achieved the world record of hitting the most number of sixes in an ODI career, which was previously owned by Sanath Jayasuriya of Sri Lanka. In the same match, he scored his sixth ODI century, also the sixth fastest century in ODI Cricket coming off 53 balls. He ended at 124 off 60 balls, which became his highest ODI score. This was also his second century in the 2010 Asia Cup.
Controversies
Pitch-tampering
On 21 November 2005, Shahid Afridi was banned for a Test match and two one-day internationals for deliberately damaging the pitch in the second match of the three-Test series against England. TV 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. Inquiries were made and Afridi's antics came into view. He was investigated and banned after the day's play, along with receiving a huge amount of criticism from the cricketing world for bringing the game into disrepute.
Match referee Roshan Mahanama said: "This ban should serve as a message to players that this type of behavior is not allowed." On this Afridi accepted his fault and said that a "senior player like me should set good examples to others because they see us to learn." His behavior was also condemned by the Pakistan Cricket Board.
Spectator Incident
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. Replays seemed to show that the action was not meant to cause injury, though the spectator had to move out of the way to avoid contact. Afridi was found guilty and given a four-game ODI suspension, the minimum possible ban for such an offense, 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. It should be noted that the South African Cricket administrators and the spectator were both also rebuked for playing a part in the causation of the incident.
Ball tampering
On 31 January 2010, Afridi was caught on camera biting into the ball towards the end of the 5th Commonwealth Bank One Day International series in Australia, at the WACA Ground. He was immediately called by the match referee after the match was over. In his defence, he told a Pakistani TV channel that he was trying to "Smell the ball" however later Afridi pleaded guilty to ball tampering and he was banned from two Twenty20 internationals.
* Youngest player in history to make an ODI century at just 16 years and 217 days with his 37 ball ton against Sri Lanka. It included 11 sixes and 6 fours.
* Made a half-century from 26 balls and took 3 second-innings wickets in Pakistan's series-drawing Test victory against India in March 2005.
* Holds the joint record with Brian Lara for the third fastest ODI century off 45 balls in April 2005 against India.This actually was the first match that witnessed the Indian cricketer-turned-commentator Ravi Shastri giving him the nickname Boom Boom Afridi.
* Highest aggregate sixes scored in the 50-over game, and he the most sixes per innings record.
* Scored four consecutive sixes off a Harbhajan Singh over in a Test match against India in January 2006, matching a feat that Kapil Dev achieved in 1990.
* Was the first player to score 12 runs off one ball, by hitting the roof of the Millennium Stadium. This took place in a game of Power Cricket.
* Holds four of the top eight fastest ODI half centuries, twice completed in 18 balls and twice in 20 balls. He has also scored a half century off just 21 balls.
* Made 32 runs off a Malinga Bandara over in an ODI game at Abu Dhabi in 2007. He struck four consecutive sixes and it was the 2nd most expensive over in ODI history.
* Is only the third player in ODI history to achieve the combination of 5000 runs and 200 wickets. The other players being Sri Lanka's Sanath Jayasuriya and South Africa's Jacques Kallis.
* On 21 June 2010, batting in the fifth match of the Asia Cup against Bangladesh in Dambulla, he achieved the world record of hitting the most number of sixes in an ODI career, which was previously owned by Sanath Jayasuriya of Sri Lanka. In the same match, he scored his sixth ODI century, also the sixth fastest century in ODI Cricket coming off 53 balls. He ended at 124 off 60 balls, which became his highest ODI score. This was also his second century in the 2010 Asia Cup.
Controversies
Pitch-tampering
On 21 November 2005, Shahid Afridi was banned for a Test match and two one-day internationals for deliberately damaging the pitch in the second match of the three-Test series against England. TV 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. Inquiries were made and Afridi's antics came into view. He was investigated and banned after the day's play, along with receiving a huge amount of criticism from the cricketing world for bringing the game into disrepute.
Match referee Roshan Mahanama said: "This ban should serve as a message to players that this type of behavior is not allowed." On this Afridi accepted his fault and said that a "senior player like me should set good examples to others because they see us to learn." His behavior was also condemned by the Pakistan Cricket Board.
Spectator Incident
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. Replays seemed to show that the action was not meant to cause injury, though the spectator had to move out of the way to avoid contact. Afridi was found guilty and given a four-game ODI suspension, the minimum possible ban for such an offense, 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. It should be noted that the South African Cricket administrators and the spectator were both also rebuked for playing a part in the causation of the incident.
Ball tampering
On 31 January 2010, Afridi was caught on camera biting into the ball towards the end of the 5th Commonwealth Bank One Day International series in Australia, at the WACA Ground. He was immediately called by the match referee after the match was over. In his defence, he told a Pakistani TV channel that he was trying to "Smell the ball" however later Afridi pleaded guilty to ball tampering and he was banned from two Twenty20 internationals.
