6 hours Ago By Aayush Kataria
Days after being signed up by Mumbai Indians for a whopping Rs. 4.80 crore in the 2025 Indian Premier League (IPL) mega auction, Allah Ghazanfar exhibited the reason behind the hype around him as he wreaked havoc over the Zimbabwe batting unit as Afghanistan thrashed the hosts by eight wickets to seal a 2-0 series victory in the three-match series.
After Hasmatullah Shahidi won the toss and chose to bowl first, Zimbabwe were bowled out for just 127 runs in 30.1 overs. Ghazanfar was the star of the show with an incredible spell that saw him take five wickets and give away just 33 runs in his 10-over spell.
He was given able support by Rashid Khan, who took a three-wicket haul. In reply, Afghanistan chased down the target in just 27 overs. Allah Ghazanfar Creates History The brilliant effort in Harare was Ghazanfar's second five-wicket haul of his career.
The 18-year-old achieved the milestone for the first time in his ODI career against South Africa in September at the Sharjah Cricket Ground during the rising Asian giants' historic series victory. Ghazanfar has joined Pakistan Cricket legend Waqar Younis and teammate Rashid Khan to become only the third player in history to take multiple five-wicket hauls in ODI cricket before turning 19. Rashid also took two five-wicket hauls before turning 19 while Waqar achieved the milestone five times.
Overall, only 7 players have taken a five-wicket haul before their 19th birthday. Apart from Ghazanfar, Rashid, Waqar, the milestone was also achieved by Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Gulsan Jha, Wasim Akram, and Aftab Ahmed. Afghanistan's Mujeeb holds the record of being the youngest (16 years, 325 days) to take a five-wicket haul in ODI cricket.
No other bowler has achieved the feat before turning 18. Ghazanfar was part of the Kolkata Knight Riders' (KKR) IPL-winning squad in 2024 after coming in as an injury replacement for Mujeeb. However, he is yet to play a match in the cash-rich league.
Ghazanfar has played 11 ODIs for Afghanistan and taken 21 wickets. The teenager is yet to make his T20I and Test debut for his country. Get Latest News Live on Times Now along with Breaking News and Top Headlines from Cricket, Sports and around the world.
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