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Hamidullah Qadri (born 5 December 2000) is an Afghan-born English professional cricketer who has played for Kent County Cricket Club, Derbyshire and the England under-19 team.

Born in Afghanistan and moving to England with his family at the age of 10, Qadri made his first-class cricket debut for Derbyshire in June 2017, becoming the first player born in 2000 to appear in the County Championship and Derbyshire's youngest ever first-class player.

Early life

Hamidullah Qadri was born in Kandahar, Afghanistan, on 5 December 2000. When he was aged one, his father left to find work in England due to the War in Afghanistan. The rest of the family were only able to follow and be reunited when Qadri was 10. Having been unfamiliar with cricket in Kandahar, Qadri developed an interest in the sport once the family had settled in Derby, learning about spin bowling from watching videos of famous players. At the age of 12, he was playing first team cricket for Alvaston & Boulton Cricket Club in the Derbyshire Premier Cricket League, alongside former New Zealand player Iain O'Brien. O'Brien nicknamed Qadri "The Magician" and became the youngster's mentor.

Career

Having developed through the Derbyshire Academy, Qadri made his List A debut for the county against South Africa A at Derby on 29 May 2017.

He made his first-class debut for Derbyshire against Glamorgan at Sophia Gardens, Cardiff, in the 2017 County Championship on 26 June 2017, taking five wickets in the second innings. On his debut, he became the first player to be born in the year 2000 to play in the County Championship and the youngest to represent Derbyshire in a first-class match.

He made his Twenty20 debut for Derbyshire in the 2017 NatWest t20 Blast against Lancashire on 16 July 2017.

Qadri was added to England's under-19 squad in July 2017 for their matches against India. He was later named in the England Young Lions squad to play a tri-series against South Africa and Namibia as a warm-up for the 2018 Under-19 World Cup.

In September 2019, Qadri joined Kent County Cricket Club ahead of the 2020 season. The following month, he was named in the England under-19 cricket team's squad for a 50-over tri-series in the Caribbean. In December 2019, he was named in England's squad for the 2020 Under-19 Cricket World Cup.

Qadri left Kent at the end of his contract in October 2024.

References

1. "Five county players to make a mark". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 13 April 2018.
2. "Derbyshire name academy intake – with new approach to youth". Derby Telegraph. Retrieved 7 March 2024 – via Newsbank.
3. "Hamidullah Qadri". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 29 May 2017.
4. McRae, Donald (18 July 2017). "Hamid Qadri: the 16-year-old spinning a message of joy from Kandahar to Derby". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 5 October 2017.
5. "South Africa A tour of England, Tour match: Derbyshire v South Africa A at Derby, May 29, 2017". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 29 May 2017.
6. "Specsavers County Championship Division Two, Glamorgan v Derbyshire at Cardiff, Jun 26-29, 2017". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
7. "Derbyshire end two-year drought - and it's down to a 16-year-old debutant". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 29 June 2017.
8. "Hamidullah Qadri becomes county cricket's first 21st century boy". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 27 June 2017.
9. "Derbyshire make history with pink ball and their youngest player". Derbyshire Times. Retrieved 27 June 2017.
10. "NatWest t20 Blast, North Group: Lancashire v Derbyshire at Manchester, Jul 16, 2017". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 16 July 2017.
11. "Qadri rise continues with Under-19 call-up". ESPNcricinfo. 4 July 2017. Retrieved 4 July 2017.
12. "Westley and Wood included in England Lions squad". ESPNcricinfo. 2 October 2017. Retrieved 11 October 2017.
13. Hogwood C (2019) Kent sign off-spinner Hamidullah Qadri from Derbyshire, Kent Online, 24 September 2019. Retrieved 24 September 2019.
14. Hamidullah Qadri: Kent sign Derbyshire & England U19 off-spinner on three-year contract, BBC Sport, 24 September 2019. Retrieved 24 September 2019.
15. "England name Under-19s squad for tri-series in West Indies". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 4 October 2019.
16. "England squad named for ICC U19 Cricket World Cup". England and Wales Cricket Board. Retrieved 23 December 2019.
17. "Qadri & Arafat leave Kent at conclusion of 2024 season". Kent County Cricket Club. Retrieved 2 October 2024.

External links

• Hamidullah Qadri at ESPNcricinfo

• 2000 births
• Living people
• English cricketers
• Derbyshire cricketers
• Kent cricketers
• Afghan emigrants to England
• Sportspeople from Kandahar
• Cricketers from Derby
• English people of Afghan descent
• Afghan refugees