Belfast, Aug 12, 2026 — Sediqullah Atal picked the perfect day to produce the innings of his career. Turning 25 on Wednesday, the Afghanistan batter blazed his way to 143 off 120 balls in the fourth ODI against Ireland at the Civil Service Cricket Club in Belfast — a knock that not only powered his side to a commanding total but also rewrote the record books for the highest ODI score by any player on their birthday.
Breaking a Four-Year-Old Record
Atal’s effort eclipsed the previous mark of 140, set by New Zealand’s Tom Latham, who finished unbeaten on that score off 123 balls against the Netherlands in Hamilton back on his 30th birthday in April 2022. Atal’s 143 now sits atop the list, followed by Sachin Tendulkar’s 134 off 131 balls for India against Australia in the 1998 Coca-Cola Cup final in Sharjah — a knock the Indian great also produced on his 25th birthday.
Elsewhere on that list, Vinod Kambli holds the distinction of being the first player anywhere to notch an ODI century on his birthday, with an unbeaten 100 against England in Jaipur back in January 1993, on what was his 21st birthday. Virat Kohli also features, having struck an unbeaten 101 off 121 balls against South Africa at Eden Gardens on his 35th birthday in November 2023.
How the Innings Unfolded
Afghanistan’s innings got off to a shaky start when Rahmanullah Gurbaz was dismissed inside the second over. From there, Atal — walking in at number three — combined with opener Ibrahim Zadran to steady the innings and then take the game away from Ireland entirely. The pair pushed Afghanistan past the 200-run mark by the 33rd over, with the two batters trading big shots throughout a stand that eventually stretched to 231 runs — now the highest second-wicket partnership in Afghanistan’s ODI history.
Ireland’s Gavin Hoey finally broke through, removing Zadran for 107 off 118 balls, an innings that included 11 fours and a six and also made Zadran the joint-third-fastest player in the world to reach 2,000 ODI runs. Atal, unmoved by the breakthrough, brought up his century off just 96 deliveries and kept going, adding a further 38 runs in partnership with Darwish Rasooli before Hoey eventually accounted for him too, with Atal departing for 143 off 120 balls, an innings studded with 17 fours and multiple sixes.
A Breakout Season by the Numbers
Atal, who made his ODI debut in November 2024, now has two centuries and two half-centuries to his name in the format. The Belfast innings also took him past 500 career ODI runs — he now sits on 634 runs from 17 matches at an average close to 40 and a strike rate approaching 87.
The knock stands as a career-best for Atal not just in ODIs but across List A cricket as a whole. In the List A format more broadly, he has amassed 1,480 runs from 46 matches, including 10 half-centuries, at an average north of 30 — numbers that suggest Wednesday’s record-breaking innings may be more a sign of things to come than a one-off.