Young batter Ibrahim Zadran made history as the first Afghanistan player to notch a century in an ODI World Cup match during a pivotal encounter against Australia at Mumbai's Wankhede Stadium on November 7.
In achieving his century, Zadran also outstripped Virat Kohli and Sachin Tendulkar, becoming the fourth youngest batter to record an ODI World Cup century.
This remarkable achievement marked his fifth ODI century, and it came at a crucial juncture for his team. Zadran secured his maiden World Cup century at the age of 21 years and 330 days, surpassing the records of Virat Kohli (22 years and 106 days) and Sachin Tendulkar (22 years and 300 days).
The youngest batter to register an ODI World Cup century is Ireland's Paul Stirling, who accomplished this feat during the 2011 edition of the tournament against the Netherlands when he was just 20 years and 196 days old.
Furthermore, Zadran became the fourth youngest batter to achieve an ODI century against the five-time World Champions, Australia. He surpassed South African opener Quinton de Kock in this particular ranking. Zadran's unbeaten innings of 129 runs, along with a quickfire 35 runs from only 17 balls, enabled Afghanistan to post a total of 291/5 against Australia, marking their highest-ever World Cup total.
The 21-year-old reached his century in 131 deliveries, which included seven boundaries. The previous highest individual score for Afghanistan in the World Cup was 96, achieved by Samiullah Shinwari against Scotland in Dunedin during the 2015 edition.
During this game, Zadran played a pivotal role in three half-century partnerships, contributing 83 runs for the second wicket with Rahmat Shah (30), 52 runs for the third wicket alongside skipper Hashmatullah Shahidi (26), and a 58-run partnership with Rashid Khan towards the end, helping Afghanistan secure a competitive total.
Notably, earlier in the tournament, Zadran also scored an impressive 87-run knock in a victorious effort against their Asian rivals, Pakistan.