Mohammad Shahzad

Profile details

FULL NAME

Mohammad Shahzad

PLAYING ROLE

Wicketkeeper

TEAMS

Kandahar Warriors

Three hundred and forty-four runs — still the mark

Mohammad Shahzad was born on 10 January 1988 in Nangarhar, Afghanistan. He is a right-handed wicketkeeper-batter who played international cricket for Afghanistan from 2009 to 2023, and he joins Kandahar Warriors for APL 2026-27 in the Silver category from the player draft in Dubai on 3 November 2026.

His APL record is the one every other batter in this league is chasing. In 2018 he captained Paktia Panthers and finished as the tournament’s leading run-scorer with 344 runs — the highest total of the only completed APL season, played at Sharjah from 5 to 21 October 2018. Balkh Legends won the title that year, but the batting charts belonged to Shahzad.

He is a wicketkeeper who bats like an opener, which is exactly how he played in 2018: hard hands, fast starts, and runs in bunches. At 38 he is the oldest player in the Kandahar squad, and the most experienced keeper in the league — but his selection was earned by that 2018 record, not by reputation alone.

Eight years is a long gap between APL seasons, and Shahzad is one of only a handful of players in the 2026-27 squads who played the first one. He returns to a different club, in different colours, with the same job: score runs at the top of the order.

Mohammad Shahzad in numbers

The season has not started, so there are no APL 2026-27 numbers for Mohammad Shahzad yet. The first ball is on Sunday 27 December 2026, and his figures for this season will be added here after Match 1.

His 2018 record is the one to beat: 344 runs as captain of Paktia Panthers, the leading total of the tournament. No other batter in the 2018 season came close, and the mark has stood untouched for eight years because the league has not been played since.

2018 figures from the Sharjah season, 5–21 October 2018. Shahzad captained Paktia Panthers and finished as the tournament’s leading run-scorer. The 2026-27 row stays blank until the season starts on 27 December 2026.

Three keepers, one pair of gloves — and the record

Kandahar have three international keepers in their squad — Shahzad, Kusal Perera and Joe Clarke — and only one pair of gloves. Shahzad’s claim is the simplest of the three: he has scored more APL runs than any player in history, and he did it as a captain.

His age is the question, and he knows it. At 38 he is the oldest player in the squad, and T20 cricket is not kind to slow starters. But his 2018 season was built on exactly the kind of fast starts Kandahar need from the top of the order, and the UAE conditions — true pitches, short boundaries, spin in the middle — suit his game.

Five teams chase four playoff places, and Kandahar play eight league matches. If Shahzad finds anything like his 2018 form, the playoff race gets a lot easier for the Warriors. The record has waited eight years for someone to beat it — and the man who set it is back to defend it.

The Afghanistan Premier League 2026 season is his chance to add to the 344 runs that have stood since 2018.