Sikandar Raza Becomes Oldest Player to Score a T20I Century at 40 Years 188 Days

Sikandar Raza scored an unbeaten 106 off 56 balls against Afghanistan in Sharjah. At 40 years and 188 days, he became the oldest player to score a T20I century. No player from any full member or associate nation had reached three figures in the format after turning 40 before this innings.

Sikandar Raza's Record Innings in Sharjah

Zimbabwe faced a target of 222 in the second T20I of the three-match series. Raza, the No. 1 all-rounder in the ICC T20I rankings, anchored the chase as captain.

He finished unbeaten with nine sixes and five fours. Zimbabwe ended on 202/5 and fell short of the target.

Innings Breakdown

Boundaries accounted for roughly 70% of his runs. The remaining 32 runs came from the other 42 balls he faced.

Oldest T20I Centurions: How the Record Compares

The previous record belonged to Gibraltar's Avinash Pai. He scored a century against Bulgaria in 2021 at 39 years and 272 days.

Raza has extended that mark by 281 days. No other player on the list has crossed the 40-year threshold.

Oldest Players to Score a T20I Century

Raza's age is only 12 days short of 40y 200d, the age of Moises Henriques at his century. The gap to the next player on the list, Pai, is the notable part of this record.

Fastest T20I Hundreds by Zimbabwean Batters

Raza already holds the Zimbabwean record for the fastest T20I century by balls faced. That innings came against Gambia in Nairobi in 2024 and took 33 balls.

His Sharjah hundred came in 54 balls. It is now the joint third-fastest century by a Zimbabwean in the format.

Fastest Zimbabwean T20I Centuries (Balls Faced)

Raza now appears twice in this list. Both of his entries came as captain.

Captaincy Centuries and a Rare Losing Hundred

Raza is now among a small group of captains with multiple T20I centuries. Before this innings, only four captains had scored two or more hundreds while leading their sides.

Captains with Multiple T20I Centuries

This was also the first T20I century by a Zimbabwean in a losing cause. Earlier high scores in defeat came close but stayed below three figures.

Highest Zimbabwean Scores in Defeat

Analytical Takeaway

The innings combined a strike rate of 189.29 with a boundary share near 70%. It also pushed the oldest-centurion mark past 40 years for the first time.

The result shows a pattern in Zimbabwe's batting. Raza's output has carried the chase, but support at the other end was not enough to cover a 222 target.