KARACHI: Shahid Afridi’s year of birth for a long time was 1980. The Pakistan cricket star caused a major stir on Thursday when it was revealed that wasn’t the exact year of his birth in his autobiography Game Changer.

In the book, Afridi writes that he was “19, and not 16” when he smashed a record-breaking 37-ball century against Sri Lanka in 1996. “I was born in 1975,” he adds.

It’s a claim that has become a major source of debate over what his actual age was when he scored that century. However, a source close to the former cricketer has claimed Afridi is right when he claims he was 19 at that time and says that the year of birth instead is a printing error.

“It is definitely a miscalculation by the publisher ... Shahid played his first One-day International at the age of 19,” the source said. “He was born in 1977.”

Afridi made his debut against Kenya in that 1996 tri-series. He did not bat in that game but shot to international stardom with that blitz against Sri Lanka.

Following the revelations in the book, critics have been suggesting that Afghanistan’s Usman Ghani, who scored an ODI century at the age of 17, against Zimbabwe in 2014 should be the holder of the record for the youngest century-maker in international cricket.

The source added that there will be changes made in the electronic copy of the book.

“The electronic copy of book will be released after the correction,” the source said. “The publisher too has apologised for the mistake.”

Afridi is due to hold a news conference on Saturday during the launch of the book where he is expected to clarify his age debate. Nevertheless, his move has not only damaged his credibility but that of Pakistani cricketers in general. “There’s always been something a little mysterious about Pakistani cricketers,” said the Australian newspaper. “Teenagers with full beards walking straight into international cricket and dominating have always drawn a raised eyebrow or two and now our suspicions have been legitimised.”

Published in Dawn, May 4th, 2019