Usman Ghani
Usman Ghani – Cricketer From Afganistan
Usman Ghani was born on November 20, 1996, in Khost, a city in southeastern Afghanistan. Very little verified information exists about his childhood or family life, which is not uncommon for Afghan athletes who grew up during years of political instability. What can be stated with confidence is that his introduction to cricket happened early in life, at a time when the sport was experiencing a revival across the country.
Usman Ghani: Background and Rise in Afghan Cricket
Following the collapse of the Taliban regime in 2001, cricket re-emerged in Afghanistan after having been prohibited for years. That same year marked a turning point for Afghan cricket, as the country received Associate Member status from the ICC and began building a pathway to international competition. For a new generation of Afghan youth, cricket became more than a game. It was a symbol of progress, unity, and possibility. Usman Ghani was among those inspired by this movement.
By the age of 10 or 11, Ghani was already actively involved in local cricket, playing in school tournaments and district-level matches. Much of his early training took place on improvised pitches or through newly established cricket academies that were starting to appear across Afghanistan. His consistency and technical ability at youth level soon set him apart, earning him selection to Afghanistan’s Under-19 team for the 2014 ICC U19 Cricket World Cup.
That tournament proved to be a landmark moment for both Ghani and Afghan cricket as a whole. Appearing in six matches, he accumulated 128 runs and contributed to Afghanistan’s historic qualification for the Super League stage for the first time. The team narrowly missed out on a semifinal place, losing a dramatic quarterfinal to South Africa by a single run, a performance that significantly raised Afghanistan’s profile in world cricket.
Ghani’s transition to senior international cricket was remarkably fast. In May 2014, just two months after the U19 World Cup, he made his debut for the Afghanistan national team at the ACC Premier League. He made an immediate impression, scoring 70 runs against Hong Kong in his first ODI and receiving the Player of the Match award. Throughout the tournament, Afghanistan dominated the competition, finishing ahead of teams such as the UAE, Oman, and Nepal. Ghani ended the event as the leading run-scorer, registering 228 runs at an average of 45.60.
Usman Ghani: Key Career Highlights
Instead of listing every match he featured in, a handful of performances clearly define Usman Ghani’s impact as a batsman.
One of his earliest landmark achievements came in ODI cricket, where he made history as the first Afghan player to register a three-figure score, compiling a commanding 118 runs against Zimbabwe after spending 143 balls at the crease.
Ghani was also involved in one of Afghanistan’s most memorable T20I moments. On 23 February 2019, he joined forces with Hazratullah Zazai to produce a record-setting 236-run stand versus Ireland, a partnership that remains one of the most extraordinary in the format.
At the domestic level, his consistency stood out during the 2018 Ghazi Amanullah Khan Regional One Day Tournament, where he finished as the tournament’s leading run-scorer. Representing the Band-e-Amir Region, he accumulated 218 runs across five matches, underlining his reliability at the top of the order.
His dominance continued in franchise cricket as well. During the 2020 Shpageeza Cricket League, Ghani topped the batting rankings by collecting 355 runs in just seven appearances, maintaining an impressive average of 59.17 and cementing his status as the competition’s most productive batter.
More recently, in August 2025, he captured global attention at the ECS T10 England tournament with an astonishing display of power hitting, plundering 45 runs from a single over, one of the most explosive passages of play seen in the competition.
In 2023, Ghani announced an indefinite withdrawal from international cricket across all formats. The decision followed public disputes with the Afghanistan Cricket Board, during which he accused the organization’s leadership of corruption and biased selection policies.
Usman Ghani: Current Path, Future Plans, and Personal Facts
As of now, Usman Ghani is concentrating on franchise and club-level cricket. Recent reports indicate that he represents Kuwait Swedish, a side competing in Kuwait’s domestic short-format tournaments. Continuing his international club journey, Ghani revealed in October 2025 that he had signed a contract with the American GCL league. He expressed optimism about the project, highlighting the rapid development and long-term potential of professional cricket in the United States.
Personal Notes and Career Details
- Ghani is married and became a father in 2023, welcoming a daughter named Iqra Ghani.
- He has a strong interest in traveling and frequently shares moments from his journeys.
- During his time with the Afghanistan national team, he wore jersey number 87 in both ODI and T20I formats.
Usman Ghani maintains an active presence on social media platforms. He can be found on Instagram under @usmanghani8787 and on X (Twitter) as @IMUsmanGhani87. His accounts primarily feature cricket-related content, motivational messages, and expressions of support for fellow players, while religious and social themes appear more occasionally.
| Format | Matches | Runs | Bat Avg | Top Score | Balls bowled | Wickets | Bowl Avg | Best Bowl | Catches |
| ODI | 17 | 435 | 25.58 | 118 | 38 | 1 | 34.00 | 1/21 | 3 |
| T20I | 33 | 764 | 26.34 | 73 | – | – | – | – | 14 |
| T20s | 76 | 2 141 | 31.95 | 79 | 16 | – | – | – | 14 |
| List A | 43 | 1 152 | 28.09 | 136 | 62 | 1 | 55.00 | 1/21 | 11 |
| FC | 20 | 1 456 | 39.35 | 117 | 114 | – | – | – | 26 |
