Rashid Khan Signing

Lore & Background

Rashid Khan was born on 20 September 1998 in a Shinwari Pashtun family in Nangarhar, Eastern Afghanistan. His family fled the war and lived in Pakistan for a few years. He grew up playing cricket with his brothers and idolised Pakistani all-rounder Shahid Afridi, after whom he stylised his bowling action. He attended the Islamia College Peshawar, where he studied computer science until 2013. He came to prominence in 2014 when he performed notably in matches played in Peshawar when the Afghan cricket team toured Pakistan. He made his One Day International debut for Afghanistan against Zimbabwe on 18 October 2015. He made his Twenty20 International debut, also against Zimbabwe, on 26 October. In June 2017, he took the best bowling figures (7 wickets for 18 runs) for an associate nation in an ODI match. In February 2018, he became the youngest player to top the ICC Player Rankings for bowlers in ODIs. Later the same month, he also topped the ICC Player Rankings for bowlers in T20Is. In September 2018, he became the number one player in the ICC's all-rounder rankings. In March 2018, at the age of 19 years and 165 days, he became the youngest player to captain an international team. In the final of the Cricket World Cup Qualifier, against the West Indies, Khan became the fastest and youngest bowler to take 100 wickets in ODIs when he dismissed Shai Hope. He took 44 matches to take his 100th dismissal, breaking the previous record of 52 matches, set by Mitchell Starc. In June 2018, he became the fastest bowler, in terms of time, to take 50 wickets in T20Is. In October 2021, he also became the fastest bowler, in terms of matches, to take 100 wickets in T20I cricket, in his 53rd match. In February 2017, he was bought by Sunrisers Hyderabad for the 2017 Indian Premier League for ₹4 crore.

Reader's Guide

Rashid Khan plays for Gujarat Titans in the Indian Premier League. He was also amongst the two first-ever Afghan players in the IPL. He bowls right-arm leg spin. He made his first-class debut on 7 December 2016, for Afghanistan against the England Lions in Abu Dhabi, taking 4 for 48 and 8 for 74, and scoring 25 not out and 52. He holds the record as the youngest to take 200 wickets in T20 cricket, achieving this milestone at 23 years and 119 days old. In franchise leagues, he plays for Gujarat Titans in the IPL, Adelaide Strikers in Australia's Big Bash League, Lahore Qalandars in the Pakistan Super League, Band-e-Amir Dragons in Afghanistan's Shpageeza Cricket League and MI New York in Major League Cricket.

Did You Know?

• Rashid Khan was one of the eleven cricketers to play in Afghanistan's first Test match, against India, in June 2018.
• He returned the most expensive bowling figures by a debutant (154 runs for 2 wickets in 34.3 overs) in a nation's maiden Test match.
• At 20 years and 350 days, he became the youngest cricketer to captain a Test match team.
• In December 2020, Rashid Khan was named the ICC Men's T20I Cricketer of the Decade.
• Rashid holds the record for the most wickets in Men's Twenty20 International cricket, surpassing Tim Southee's record of 164 during a match against the United Arab Emirates on September 1, 2025.