Sahibzada Farhan

Sahibzada Farhan
Personal information
Born (1996-03-06) 6 March 1996
Charsadda, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan
NicknamePatakha[1]
Height1.75 m (5 ft 9 in)
BattingRight-handed
RoleTop-order batter
International information
National side
ODI debut (cap 257)11 March 2026 v Bangladesh
Last ODI2 June 2026 v Australia
T20I debut (cap 79)8 July 2018 v Australia
Last T20I28 February 2026 v Sri Lanka
T20I shirt no.51
Domestic team information
YearsTeam
2016, 2023–presentPeshawar
2017Baluchistan
2017Faisalabad
2018–2019, 2025–presentIslamabad United
2019–2022Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
2022Karachi Kings
2023Lahore Qalandars
2026Multan Sultans
2026Dambulla Sixers
Career statistics
Competition ODI T20I FC LA
Matches 5 46 63 77
Runs scored 95 1,305 4,796 3,021
Batting average 19.00 30.34 44.82 40.28
100s/50s 0/0 2/10 10/29 8/20
Top score 31 100* 245 155
Balls bowled - – 210 –
Wickets - – 3 –
Bowling average – – 39.66 –
5 wickets in innings – – 0 –
10 wickets in match – – 0 –
Best bowling – – 2/23 –
Catches/stumpings 1/– 19/– 65/– 39/–
Medal record
Men's cricket
Representing  Pakistan
Asia Cup
Runner-up2025 UAE
Source: ESPNcricinfo, 3 June 2026

Sahibzada Farhan (Pashto: صاحبزاده فرحان; born 6 March 1996) is a Pakistani international cricketer.[2] He plays for the national team as a right-handed top order batsman.[3][4] Farhan represents Peshawar in domestic cricket and Multan Sultans in the Pakistan Super League.[5]

Early life

Farhan began playing cricket at a young age in his hometown of Charsadda, primarily with tape or tennis balls due to the lack of hard-ball cricket facilities. His formal journey in cricket began after his family moved to Peshawar in 2008, where he joined the Peshawar Gymkhana Club. Although his family relocated for his education, Farhan's passion remained with cricket, and he often trained without full support from his extended family. However, his father recognized his potential and supported his ambitions.[6]

Initially, Farhan trained as a fast bowler but found limited success, participating in only a few matches over two years. He later switched focus to batting after performing impressively in a local match. Encouraged by a friend, he resumed hard-ball cricket as a batsman, quickly gaining attention in local tournaments by scoring successive centuries in a PCB inter-district tournament.[6]

These performances earned him a spot in the Peshawar Under-19 team, despite skepticism from some quarters. Supported by coach Fazl-e-Akbar, Farhan excelled at the Under-19 level. Despite his strong performances, Farhan's first-class debut was delayed until 2016 due to an appendicitis surgery.[6]

Domestic career

He made his first-class debut for Peshawar in the 2016–17 Quaid-e-Azam Trophy on 1 October 2016.[7]

He was the leading run-scorer for Balochistan in the 2017 Pakistan Cup, scoring 331 runs in five matches.[8]

In April 2018, he was named in Punjab's squad for the 2018 Pakistan Cup.[9][10] In the opening match against Balochistan, he scored 155 runs and was named man of the match.[11][12] In March 2019, he was named in Sindh's squad for the 2019 Pakistan Cup.[13][14]

In September 2019, he joined the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa squad for the 2019–20 Quaid-e-Azam Trophy.[15][16] He was the leading run-scorer in the 2021–22 National T20 Cup, with 447 runs,[17] and was named the PCB's Domestic Cricketer of the Year for 2021.[18] In December 2023, he was appointed captain of Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited for the 2023–24 President's Trophy.[19]

In the 2024–25 National T20 Cup, Farhan set a new record for the most runs in a single edition of the tournament, scoring 588 runs in six innings. During the semi-final for Peshawar, he scored 148 runs against Abbottabad Region. His highest score of 162, made against Quetta Region, surpassed Kamran Akmal's 150 as the highest T20 score by a Pakistani batsman.[20][21] He ended the tournament with 605 runs and was adjudged Player of the Series.

During the 2025 Pakistan Super League, he played for Islamabad United, scoring 184 runs in six matches with a strike rate of 165.77.[22] He was later signed by Multan Sultans for the 2026 Pakistan Super League, where he scored his ninth Twenty20 century.[23]

International career

In June 2018, he was named in Pakistan's Twenty20 International (T20I) squad for the 2018 Zimbabwe Tri-Nation Series.[24] He made his T20I debut against Australia in the final of the tournament.[25]

In December 2018, he represented Pakistan in the 2018 ACC Emerging Teams Asia Cup.[26]

In May 2025, Farhan returned to the national side and scored a career-best 74 runs in the second T20I against Bangladesh, reaching his maiden T20I half-century in 29 balls.[27]

During the Pakistan's 3–0 series sweep against the West Indies in August 2025, he scored 63 runs off 41 balls in the third T20I.[28][29]

During the 2025 Asia Cup, Farhan scored 58 runs off 45 balls in a match against India. During the tournament, he surpassed Abhishek Sharma’s record for the most T20 sixes in a calendar year by an Asian batter, reaching 88 sixes in 34 innings.[30][31] In the 2025 Asia Cup final, he was the top-scorer for Pakistan with 57 runs.

In November 2025, during a Tri-Nation Series match against Sri Lanka, he scored an unbeaten 80* off 45 balls.[32] He became the first Pakistani batter to hit 100 T20 sixes in a single calendar year during this series.[33] In the fourth match of the series against Zimbabwe, he scored 63 runs from 41 balls in a 103-run partnership with Babar Azam.[34]

Farhan was included in the Pakistan squad for the 2026 Men's T20 World Cup. He finished as the tournament's leading run-scorer with 383 runs, surpassing Virat Kohli's record for the most runs in a single T20 World Cup edition.[35] He became the first player to score two centuries in a single T20 World Cup and shared a 176-run partnership with Fakhar Zaman against Sri Lanka, the highest partnership in the history of the tournament.[35]

Controversy

Following the match against India at the 2025 Asia Cup on 14 September, Farhan was criticized by the Indian media for a celebration they described as "AK-47-style" after he reached his half-century. Farhan defended it, saying that the gesture was spontaneous and not pre-planned, and that he did not mind how it was interpreted.[36][37]

Following disciplinary hearings conducted by members of the ICC Elite Panel of Match Referees, Farhan was found guilty of breaching Article 2.21 (conduct that brings the game into disrepute) and was issued an official warning along with one demerit point.[38]

References

  1. ↑ "Keep calm and celebrate like a #Prince – The story behind Islamabad United nicknames". www.geo.tv. Retrieved 3 April 2023.
  2. ↑ "Sahibzada Farhan". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 2 October 2016.
  3. ↑ "PCB Central Contracts 2018–19". Pakistan Cricket Board. Retrieved 6 August 2018.
  4. ↑ "New central contracts guarantee earnings boost for Pakistan players". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 6 August 2018.
  5. ↑ "Sahibzada Farhan – Player Profile". Cricbuzz. Retrieved 1 September 2025.
  6. 1 2 3 Husain, Amir (9 May 2017). ""If a ball is there to be hit, I will try to smash it out of the park" – Sahibzada Farhan". PakPassion. Archived from the original on 30 May 2025.
  7. ↑ "Quaid-e-Azam Trophy, Pool A: Peshawar v Habib Bank Limited at Peshawar, Oct 1-4, 2016". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 2 October 2016.
  8. ↑ "Pakistan Cup, 2017 Balochistan: Batting and bowling averages". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 19 April 2018.
  9. ↑ "Pakistan Cup one-day tournament to begin in Faisalabad next week". Geo TV. Retrieved 21 April 2018.
  10. ↑ "Pakistan Cup Cricket from 25th". The News International. Retrieved 21 April 2018.
  11. ↑ "Pakistan Cup National One-day Cricket Championship". The News International. Retrieved 26 April 2018.
  12. ↑ "Sahibzada Farhan overcomes Ahmed Shehzad's men at Pakistan Cup opener". Business Recorder. Retrieved 26 April 2018.
  13. ↑ "Federal Areas aim to complete hat-trick of Pakistan Cup titles". Pakistan Cricket Board. Retrieved 25 March 2019.
  14. ↑ "Pakistan Cup one-day cricket from April 2". The International News. Retrieved 25 March 2019.
  15. ↑ "PCB announces squads for 2019-20 domestic season". Pakistan Cricket Board. Archived from the original on 3 September 2019. Retrieved 4 September 2019.
  16. ↑ "Sarfaraz Ahmed and Babar Azam to take charge of Pakistan domestic sides". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 4 September 2019.
  17. ↑ "Iftikhar Ahmed's all-round heroics see Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to successful National T20 title defence". Pakistan Cricket Board. Retrieved 13 October 2021.
  18. ↑ "Rizwan, Babar, and Shaheen bag PCB Awards 2021". Geo TV. Retrieved 7 January 2022.
  19. ↑ "Squads, schedule announced for President's Trophy". Cricket Pakistan. 15 December 2023. Retrieved 25 December 2023.
  20. ↑ Web Desk (27 March 2025). "Sahibzada Farhan equals Fakhar Zaman's record in stunning National T20 Cup run". Geo Super. Retrieved 31 August 2025.
  21. ↑ Sports Desk (27 March 2025). "Sahibzada Farhan breaks T20 record as Peshawar reach National T20 Cup final". The Express Tribune. Retrieved 31 August 2025.
  22. ↑ Sports Desk (2 May 2025). "Sahibzada Farhan fuels Islamabad United's surge in HBL PSL X". The Nation (Pakistan). Retrieved 31 August 2025.
  23. ↑ Mohammed, Shamseer (2 April 2026). "Pakistan's Sahibzada Farhan equals Kohli's record, closes in on Babar". Gulf News.
  24. ↑ "Pakistan call up uncapped Sahibzada Farhan for T20I tri-series in Zimbabwe". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 22 June 2018.
  25. ↑ "Final, Zimbabwe Twenty20 Tri-Series at Harare, Jul 8 2018". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 8 July 2018.
  26. ↑ "Pakistan squad announced for Emerging Asia Cup 2018 to Co-Host by Pakistan and Sri Lanka". Pakistan Cricket Board. Retrieved 3 December 2018.
  27. ↑ Mohammad Yaqoob (31 May 2025). "Sahibzada sets the tone as Pakistan thrash Bangladesh to seal T20 series". Dawn. Dawn Media Group. Retrieved 31 August 2025.
  28. ↑ "Sahibzada Farhan, Saim Ayub shine as Pakistan clinch T20 series against West Indies". NDTV. 4 August 2025. Retrieved 31 August 2025.
  29. ↑ "West Indies vs Pakistan, 3rd T20I". India Today. 4 August 2025. Retrieved 31 August 2025.
  30. ↑ "Six after 400 balls vs Jasprit Bumrah? Data shows Pakistan batter Sahibzada Farhan's TikTok was justified". Hindustan Times. Retrieved 22 September 2025.
  31. ↑ "Sahibzada Farhan breaks Abhishek Sharma's six-hitting record". A Sports. 22 September 2025. Retrieved 22 September 2025.
  32. ↑ "Farhan 80* and Nawaz three-for keep Pakistan unbeaten". ESPNcricinfo. 22 November 2025. Retrieved 22 November 2025.
  33. ↑ "Sahibzada Farhan achieves historic feats in T20 cricket". Times of Karachi. 21 November 2025. Retrieved 22 November 2025.
  34. ↑ "Hat-trick hero Usman Tariq helps Pakistan crush Zimbabwe in T20I tri-series". www.geosuper.tv. Retrieved 24 November 2025.
  35. 1 2 "Farhan overtakes Kohli, matches Gayle". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 1 March 2026.
  36. ↑ "Hidden message behind AK-47 celebration? Pakistan's Sahibzada Farhan reveals the reason". The Times of India. 22 September 2025. Retrieved 22 September 2025.
  37. ↑ ""Mujhe Parwah Nahi": Pakistan Star Sahibzada Farhan Breaks Silence On AK47 Gesture Against India". NDTV Sports. 22 September 2025. Retrieved 22 September 2025.
  38. ↑ "Asia Cup 2025 – Players sanctioned for ICC Code of Conduct breaches". ICC. 4 November 2025. Retrieved 27 November 2025.
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