Hashmatullah Shahidi

The first-ever player to score a double century in Test matches for Afghanistan, Shahidi has been a solid left-handed top-order batsman for Afghanistan over the past few years now.

Shahidi started playing cricket at a very young age and started his cricketing journey at the U-17 level, and was drafted in the 2010 U-19 World Cup held in New Zealand. Four years later, he played his second U-19 World Cup and was part of the team that defeated Sri Lanka and Australia in the tournament.

Shahidi made it to the Afghan squad for the 2013 ICC World Cricket League Championship Tournament. He made his debut against Kenya and was dismissed for a duck in his debut innings. 

In 2018, Shahidi was part of the Afghanistan squad for their inaugural Test match against India. He top-scored in their second innings with an unbeaten 36 as Afghanistan lost the match by an innings and 262 runs.

Shahidi was a part of the Afghanistan squad for the 2019 World Cup in England and Wales. He registered 197 runs in eight innings, including a well compiled 76 against the eventual World Champions, England. In the same tournament, Shahidi completed 1,000 runs in ODI cricket.

Shahidi’s crowning moment came in 2021 when he became the first Afghan player to score a Test double century, slamming an unbeaten 200 in Afghanistan’s first innings total of 545 for 4 against Zimbabwe. 

A technically sound player, Shahidi plays the role of an anchor perfectly. While others can go hard at the ball, Shahidi is the glue for the team and the whole game revolves around him.

(As of Mar 2021)