The first time Shahid Afridi batted in an international cricket match, he made a record that would remain unbeaten for 17 years. He scored the then fastest century off 37 balls.
Shahid was 16 at that time. Except, he was not. In his autobiography, he revealed he was actually 19 when he played that historic innings as he was born in 1975 and not 1980 – as most people seem to believe.
Alhamdulillah, #GameChanger is already making waves. But dont go for the media hype! To appreciate what @wajskhan & I have penned in my bio, please READ THE BOOK (yet to get my 1st copy!) If I’ve been tough on someone, I’ve given them credit where its due! #TruthFirst #HopeNotOut
— Shahid Afridi (@SAfridiOfficial) May 2, 2019
Now, this is where the problem starts. If he was born in 1975, he would have been 20 or 21 in 1996 when he made that century.
The conspiracy theory just gets more serious when you take into account his other milestones. For instance, he was 40 or 41 and not 36 when he played his last match for Pakistan at the T20 World Cup 2016. So on and so forth.
People obviously had opinions to give on the matter.
Amused by the fact that Shahid Afridi has revealed the worst kept secret in international cricket. But I have always believed that unless you are playing an U19 World Cup, your age doesn’t matter.
— Harsha Bhogle (@bhogleharsha) May 3, 2019
Remember the famous words from @GeoffreyBoycott “If he is 16, then I’m 21”. The great man knew it day one 😇
— Sachin Keyyoor (@keyyoor) May 3, 2019
Also in the gentleman’s game where integrity is put at such a high pedestal, this counts as dishonoring the game. It’s not just a mere technicality IMHO.
— Gabbbar (@GabbbarSingh) May 3, 2019
How about when you hold the record for the youngest player to score an ODI century?
— Ashwin Natarajan (@ashwin91) May 3, 2019
Not sure why fans are finding it amusing that Shahid Afridi was older than what his passport claimed. Many players in the subcontinent have similar discrepancies in age; Hasan Reza of Pakistan was reportedly 14 (FOURTEEN!) when he made his international debut. #CWC19 #CWC
— Ahnaf (@Fareen21) May 3, 2019
This is probably going to be my favourite story of the day. Week. Month. Shahid Afridi never fails to entertain.https://t.co/URXviFDVik
— Melinda Farrell (@melindafarrell) May 2, 2019
So if Shahid Afridi was born in 1975:
— Saj Sadiq (@Saj_PakPassion) May 2, 2019
He made his Pakistan debut at the age of 21
He made his Test debut at the age of 23
He retired from international cricket at the age of 43
He played his last ODI at the age of 40
At the moment he is 44
Age is just a number 😀#Cricket
SNEAK 100
— Ashan Wanasinghe 🇱🇰 (@Ashan_Wane) May 3, 2019
That makes him 21 not 16 when he broke Sanath's fastest century record🤷♂️😂😂 https://t.co/pCkcZMdJwD
So, he is either still lying about his birth year or no one bothered to proof read the autobiography. Can’t decide what’s worse!
