Shahid Afridi

Shahid Afridi

Date of Birth: 1 March 1980, Khyber Agency  Test Debut: Against Australia at Karachi in 1998/99  ODI Debut: Against Kenya at Nairobi in 1996/97  Bats: Right Hand Bat  Bowls: Leg Break Googly

A flamboyant all-rounder, Afridi is one of many talented Pakistani players who have yet to live up to their country's high expectations.

This was not helped by the young right-hander's explosive debut against Sri Lanka in the 1996/97 season.

Brought into international cricket as a 16-year-old leg-spinner, he surprised everyone but himself by pinch-hitting the fastest one-day hundred in his maiden innings.

His two centuries as an opening and late middle-order batsman in one-day cricket since then have disappointed some.

However, Afridi is still a compulsive shot-maker and, as a bowler, his leg-spinners, characterised by a hasty approach to the bowling crease, are often under-rated.

No doubt, the man with reputedly the firmest handshake in international cricket is relishing the chance of proving his critics wrong.

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