Shaheen Afridi becomes fastest Pakistan pacer to 150 ODI wickets, passes Waqar and Shoaib
Pakistan captain Shaheen Shah Afridi etched his name into the record books on Sunday, becoming the fastest fast bowler from his country to claim 150 wickets in One-Day Internationals. The left-arm pacer reached the milestone during the fourth match of the ODI tri-series against England at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore.
Bowling first after winning the toss, Shaheen struck in his very first over, dismissing England opener Tom Banton to register his 150th wicket in the 50-over format. The 26-year-old then added another wicket soon after, removing England batter Joe Root, who was caught at backward point.
In earlier reporting from the same match on October 25, England had collapsed to 38/3 inside 7.2 overs in a contest they needed to win, with Joe Root falling to Afridi and Harry Brook — fresh from the fastest ODI double-century off 114 balls — run out for a reckless single.
Record-breaking pace
Shaheen achieved the feat in his 80th ODI, two matches more than former Pakistan spinner Saqlain Mushtaq, who holds the overall record for the fastest Pakistani bowler to take 150 wickets, having reached the landmark in 78 matches. However, Shaheen went past Pakistan pace greats Waqar Younis and Shoaib Akhtar, who both took 91 matches to claim 150 ODI wickets, to become the country's fastest fast bowler to the mark.
He is now the second-fastest Pakistani bowler overall and the joint-fourth fastest in the world to reach 150 ODI wickets.
Fastest Pakistani bowlers to 150 ODI wickets
- Saqlain Mushtaq — 78 matches
- Shaheen Shah Afridi — 80 matches*
- Waqar Younis — 91 matches
- Shoaib Akhtar — 91 matches
- Saeed Ajmal — 93 matches
- Umar Gul — 104 matches
Globally, Nepal's Sandeep Lamichhane holds the record for the fastest to 150 ODI wickets, reaching the milestone in 73 matches, followed by Mitchell Starc (77) and Saqlain Mushtaq (78). Shaheen shares fourth spot with Afghanistan's Rashid Khan and India's Mohammed Shami, who also took 80 ODIs to complete 150 wickets.
Tri-series context
England arrived in Lahore searching for their first win of the tournament after losing to Pakistan by 87 runs in their opener and then watching Sri Lanka chase down 430 at Rawalpindi — the second-highest total successfully chased in ODI history. Pakistan, meanwhile, began the series with a 37-run win over Sri Lanka at Rawalpindi and also defended their total against the same opponents. They made two changes to their playing XI for Sunday's match, the first of the tournament's Lahore leg.