Introduction

Afghan cricket player Rahmanullah Gurbaz was born on November 28, 2001, and made his international debut for his country in September 2019. He created history in January 2021 when he became the first batter from Afghanistan to strike a century against Ireland in an ODI. His parents are from the Afghan Gurbaz tribe.

Early life

On November 28, 2001, Rahmanullah Gurbaz was born in Kabul, Afghanistan. Despite his father's urging to pursue medicine, he found comfort in cricket as a child growing up in a difficult home. One of his friends gave him equipment and transportation as support. At first, his brother even destroyed his bat when he found out that his family did not approve of his passion for cricket. Gurbaz was encouraged to attend an academy for additional training, though, after former cricket player Mohammad Khan Zadran saw his talent following a memorable performance in a tournament.

Domestic and T20 career

On January 27, 2017, Gurbaz made his List A debut for Afghanistan A against Zimbabwe A. On September 12, 2017, he made his Twenty20 debut for Mis Ainak Knights. On March 1, 2018, he made his first-class cricket debut for Mis Ainak Region. In September of the same year, he joined Paktia in the Afghanistan Premier League. Later on, he was a player for the Barbados Tridents of the Caribbean Premier League and the Khulna Tigers of the Bangladesh Premier League. He played for the Jaffna Kings in the Lanka Premier League and signed with the Multan Sultans of the Pakistan Super League in April 2021. He joined the Kolkata Knight Riders in March 2022 after taking Jason Roy's spot in the Gujarat Titans' lineup for the Indian Premier League, where he helped the team win its third title.

International career

Gurbaz was included in the Afghanistan Under-19 Cricket World Cup 2018 squad in December 2017. After finishing first with 117 runs in the 2018 ACC Under-19 Asia Cup, he advanced to the ACC Emerging Teams Asia Cup and made the under-23 squad. His T20I debut came on September 14, 2019, against Zimbabwe, in August 2019. On January 21, 2021, Gurbaz made his ODI debut, amassing 127 runs and making history as the first Afghan player to reach a century on his debut. He was included in Afghanistan's squads for the 2023 Cricket World Cup and the 2024 ICC T20 World Cup in addition to being picked for the 2021 ICC T20 World Cup.