Stats Pack: Afridi overtakes Kumble

[ehsan]

Re: Stats Pack: Afridi overtakes Kumble

@phoenixdesi

I have to completely disagree…yes afridi played his first match as bowler but he was only 16 with almost no healthy first class experience…what I am trying to say that it is not like he had played over 40 first class matches with 150 wickets as a leg-break spinner and was included into the team to fill the gap as a specialist leg break spinner…that was absolutely not the case.. upon his debut, his leg break skills were as unknown as were his batting skills … he was a bit of both and that is how he was known…a logical question would be why was he selected into the team at the first place when his batting and bowling skills both were sort of unproven? frankly speaking he got into the team because of the regional politics and quota representation..after zakir khan, there was zero presence from NWFP in our national team for a very long time and afridi was pushed into the team for political reasons more than anything else… so to call him “a specialist spinner upon his debut” is a misstatement and distortion of our cricket history.

From what I can recall he was playing in Windies for Pak A and had to be flown our to join the team as a replacement spinner. Rest is history as he hit the fastest century.

from Wikipedia:

**In October 1996 at the age of sixteen Afridi was drafted into the ODI team during the four-nation Sameer Cup 1996–97 as a leg spinneras a replacement for the injured Mushtaq Ahmed.[SUP][6]](Shahid Afridi - Wikipedia)[/SUP]**He made his debut on 2 October against Kenya, however he didn’t bat and went wicketless.[SUP][7]](Shahid Afridi - Wikipedia)[/SUP] In the next match against Sri Lanka, Afridi batted at number three in the role of a pinch-hitter. 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 equalled the record for most in an ODI innings.[SUP][8]](Shahid Afridi - Wikipedia)[/SUP][SUP][nb 1]](Shahid Afridi - Wikipedia)[/SUP] Aged 16 years and 217 days, Afridi became the youngest player to score an ODI century.[SUP][10]](Shahid Afridi - Wikipedia)[/SUP] 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.[SUP][8]](Shahid Afridi - Wikipedia)[/SUP]