Shahid Afridi finally reveals his real age in autobiography

Shahid Afridi had been a fan favourite since he burst onto the scene in 1996, striking a 37-ball one-day century against Sri Lanka in only his second match to set a world record that was unbeaten for 18 years.

Former Pakistan captian Shahid Afridi. Photo: File (AFP)

NEW DELHI: Former Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi, who officially turned 39 in March, has finally revealed his exact age, solving one of the greatest mysteries of the cricketing world. Afridi, who stunned the world with 37-ball one-day century in 1996, has made the revelation in his autobiography "Game Changer", in which tells his life story just the way he bats - instinctively, candidly and with no holds barred. In the autobiography, released in India and Pakistan this week, Afridi writes that he was born in 1975. It makes him five years older than what he is in the official records of the ICC. "Also, for the record, I was just nineteen, and not sixteen like they claim. I was born in 1975. So, yes, the authorities stated my age incorrectly," Afridi notes in the autobiography about his debut age, which is officially 16, in the International arena. With this, he again ended up confusing his fans. First he wrote he was nineteen when got a call to play for Pakistan and hit his first century in 1996, and later he said he was born in 1975. To put things straight, if he was born in 1975, then he was 21 in 1996. After all, nicknamed ‘Boom Boom’, Afridi had been a fan favourite since he burst onto the scene in 1996, striking a 37-ball one-day century against Sri Lanka in only his second match to set a world record that was unbeaten for 18 years. One of the world's greatest all-rounders, today, he holds the distinction of having hit the most number of sixes in the history of ODI cricket, scooping the most wickets in T20s and winning the most player-of-the match awards in the same format. He became known as a leg-spin bowling all-rounder in the second half of his career and was instrumental in Pakistan’s early successes in Twenty20, including their 2009 victory. Afridi finished his international career having played just 27 Test matches which yielded 1,176 runs with a highest score of 156 and 48 wickets. He played 398 one-day internationals with 8,064 runs, a highest score of 124 while taking 395 wickets with his leg spin. His Twenty20 international CV saw him play 98 matches with 1,405 runs and a career-leading 97 wickets. "Game Changer" is co-written with journalist Wajahat S Khan and published by HarperCollins India imprint Harper Sport.