Salman Ali Agha Breaks Yousuf's Record With Fourth ODI Hundred Batting at No. 5 or Lower

Salman Ali Agha has broken a long-standing Pakistan record for ODI hundreds batting at No. 5 or lower. He scored 107 off 90 balls against Sri Lanka in the opening match of the ODI tri-series at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium on Sunday, October 18. It was his fourth ODI century, and Pakistan won the match by 37 runs.

All four of Agha's ODI hundreds have come while batting at No. 5 or lower, which takes him past Mohammad Yousuf, who scored three. He reached the milestone in just 54 ODIs. Three of the four centuries have come at No. 5, making him the first Pakistani batter to score three ODI hundreds at that position. Jos Buttler of England and David Miller of South Africa still lead the overall list for the most ODI hundreds at No. 5 or lower.

Agha walked in after Pakistan had lost wickets in the middle overs, and his innings turned the match. He hit 10 fours and a six, and reached his century with an edged boundary. He added 97 for the fifth wicket with Hasan Nawaz, who made 37 and attacked Sri Lanka's only specialist leg-spinner, Sachindu Colombage, who finished with 0-61. Agha then added 64 with Arafat Minhas, who made 18. Pakistan finished on 305.

Captain Shaheen Shah Afridi led the bowling attack as Sri Lanka were bowled out for 268 in 48.1 overs, falling 37 runs short.

The hundred was Agha's second against Sri Lanka. His highest ODI score remains the 134 he made against South Africa in Karachi on February 12, 2025, in Pakistan's highest successful ODI chase. After the innings, ESPNcricinfo figures put his ODI record at 1,673 runs at an average of about 44 and a strike rate near 97, with four hundreds and nine fifties.

The century was also a timely return. Agha had been stripped of the T20 captaincy and lost his place in Pakistan's T20 side. He forced his way back into the ODI squad with prolific domestic form, which included a triple century.