Hashmatullah Shahidi created history as he became the first Afghanistan captain to hit a hundred against India in any format. The 31-year-old slammed a stellar and a fighting century in the third ODI of the series at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai for his maiden ODI ton.
Shahidi had a fifty against India as skipper, having hit an 80 in the ODI World Cup 2023 in Delhi. He was their second captain to have hit a fifty against India in international cricket, as Ibrahim Zadran had also scored a half ton during a T20I against the Men in Blue in January 2024.
But no Afghanistan skipper could have hit a hundred against the mighty Indian team until Shahidi. He slammed a fighting knock of 102 from 131 balls, braving the Indian bowling line-up and the scorching Chennai heat. He was down with multiple cramps at the back end of the innings and needed a physio’s attention before continuing.
Shahidi’s long wait comes to an end
Shahidi has been a long-serving servant for Afghanistan, having made his ODI debut way back in 2013. However, his maiden ODI ton arrived in 2026, 94 innings after he played in his first ODI outing against Kenya in Sharjah. The 94 innings Shahidi took for his maiden ODI ton are the most any Afghanistan batter has taken. The previous record was held byย Asghar Afghan, who got to his ton after 67 innings.
Moreover, the Southpaw tookย 4644 days for his first ODI ton. These are the fourth-most for any batter to get to his maiden ODI ton in the world. The record is held byย Regis Chakabva, who neededย 5040 days for his first ODI century.ย
Most days from ODI debut to maiden 100:
5040 Regis Chakabva (2008-22)
4858 Sunil Gavaskar (1974-87)
4674 Arjuna Ranatunga (1982-94)
4644 Hashmatullah Shahidi (2013-26)
4639 Nasser Hussain (1989-03)
This was also the second-slowest fifty by an Afghanistan player in ODIs. The only slower effort than Shahidi’s 126-ball ton was the 131-ball century from Ibrahim Zadran against Australia in 2023 at Wankhede.ย
Slowest ODI 100s for Afghanistan (by balls):
131 Ibrahim Zadran vs Aus Mumbai WS 2023
126 Hashmatullah Shahidi vs Ind Chennai 2026
125 Usman Ghani vs Zim Bulawayo 2014
125 Rahmat Shah vs Ire Greater Noida 2017
125 Sediqullah Atal vs Zim Harare 2024
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