File photo of Shahid Afridi© AFP
There's a reason why former Pakistan all-rounder Shahid Afridi was given the nickname 'Boom-Boom'. One of the finest attacking batters Pakistan has produced, Afridi held the record of scoring the fastest century in ODI cricket, having notched up a 37-ball ton against Sri Lanka in Nairobi, for a long time. In 2014, New Zealand all-rounder Corey Anderson broke Afridi's record in 36 balls. Former South Africa skipper AB de Villiers then shattered Anderson's record by registering a 31-ball ton against West Indies in 2015.
While there have been a few quicker tons than Afridi's, there's special story behind the retired Pakistan star's century that Indians are fond of. It was revealed by Afridi himself that he used the great Sachin Tendulkar's bat to score that 37-ball hundred.
"I have safely kept the bat with which I played my first innings. The bat created history. It was Sachin's bat and he is one of my favourite players and I created a world record from his bat. And I am thankful to Waqar Younis for the bat as he was the one who gave it to me when I was practicing before the match. He asked me to play the game with that bat," he had said in a YouTube video, as per TNN back in 2021.
"The bat played a major role in the making of Shahid Afridi. It's very special for me. In between, I tried to play with it later on but then decided to preserve it," he added.
— Saj Sadiq (@SajSadiqCricket) October 4, 2023#OnThisDay in 1996. The day Shahid Afridi smashed 11 sixes and took only 37 balls to reach a ODI century.
Afridi when speaking about this innings "when I'm not performing well with the bat I watch my 37 ball hundred on youtube" #Cricket pic.twitter.com/48hLfuKa26
Afridi's former Pakistan teammate Azhar Mahmood also revealed an intriguing story tied to that Sachin Tendulkar bat used by the retired all-rounder.
"In those days, the two Sri Lankan openers, Jayasuriya and wicketkeeper Kaluwitharana, they used to attack upfront. So we thought we need someone who could bat at No.3. Afridi and I ? Wasim said you guys go and try to slog (in the nets). I was slogging sensibly and Afridi went against the spinners, murdering everyone in the nets," Mahmood recalled.
"Next day, we got the game against Sri Lanka and they said he (Afridi) is batting at number three. I think Waqar (Younis) got a bat from Sachin (Tendulkar), he used the great Sachin's bat and managed to get a hundred and after that, he became a batsman. Mainly he was a bowler who can hit the ball, but in the end, he had a wonderful career," he added.