DURBAN: Pakistan ace Shaheen Shah Afridi on Tuesday added another feather to his cap by becoming the first Pakistani bowler to take 100 wickets in each of the three international formats of cricket.
Afridi achieved the milestone during the first T20I of the three-match series against South Africa here at the Kingsmead Stadium on Tuesday.
The left-arm pacer, who was just three wickets away from a century of T20I wickets, returned brilliant figures of 3/22 in the aforementioned game and became only the third Pakistani bowler to pick a hundred wickets in the shortest format, behind only Haris Rauf and Shadab Khan.
The 24-year-old achieved this feat in just his 74th T20I match, making him the second-fastest Pakistani to claim 100 T20I wickets after Haris Rauf, who reached the milestone in 71 matches.
As a result, Afridi joined an exclusive club of cricketers, becoming only the fourth player in the world to take 100 wickets in each format in international cricket, alongside New Zealand’s Tim Southee, Bangladesh’s Shakib Al Hasan and Sri Lanka’s Lasith Malinga.
In addition to his T20I tally, Afridi has taken 112 wickets in ODIs and 116 in Test matches.
Most Wickets for Pakistan in T20Is:
- Haris Rauf – 110 wickets
- Shadab Khan – 107 wickets
- Shaheen Afridi – 100* wickets
- Shahid Afridi – 97 wickets
- Saeed Ajmal – 85 wickets
Despite Afridi’s heroics, South Africa racked up a huge total of 183/9 on the board, courtesy of David Miller’s swashbuckling half-century, followed by George Linde’s quick cameo at the end.
Miller top-scored for the Proteas with a 40-ball 82, studded with eight sixes and four fours, while Linde hit 48 off 24 balls, laced with three fours and four sixes.
Faizan Lakhani is Deputy Editor (Sports) at Geo News.
