Tarouba, Trinidad and Tobago: Shaheen Shah Afridi left a significant mark in the first ODI against the West Indies at Tarouba, not only with his match-winning performance but also by making history. His 4 wickets for 51 runs helped Pakistan bowl out the hosts for 280, and in doing so, he surpassed Mohammed Shami to achieve the best strike rate in men’s ODIs (minimum 100 wickets) among bowlers from Full Member nations. According to Wisden, Shaheen’s strike rate now stands at 25.4, edging past Shami’s 25.8.
Shaheen’s impressive stats highlight his influence on the game. With 131 wickets in his first 65 ODIs, he holds the record for the most wickets at this stage, and is the only bowler in history to average more than two wickets per match during this period. Previously, Australia’s Mitchell Starc and Afghanistan’s Rashid Khan jointly held the record with 129 wickets.
Looking ahead, Shaheen is on track to maintain this record beyond 66 matches. To extend it to 67 games, he will need to surpass Starc’s tally of 133 wickets.
After winning the toss, Pakistan chose to field and struck early thanks to Shaheen, backed by Naseem Shah’s 3/55. Despite half-centuries from West Indies’ Evin Lewis (60), Shai Hope (55), and Roston Chase (53), the hosts couldn’t set a dominating total.
In reply, Pakistan’s chase had tense moments. Babar Azam scored 47 and Mohammad Rizwan made 53, but at 180/5, the match was still up for grabs. Hasan Nawaz then played a brilliant innings of 63 off 54 balls, while Hussain Talat contributed 41 off 37 balls. The duo put together an unbeaten 104-run partnership to guide Pakistan to victory with five wickets and seven balls to spare.
