Ajit Agarkar
A fiery fast bowler who holds the record for the fastest to 50 ODI wickets and delivered India a historic triumph in Australia.
Born 1977 (age 49)·Indian cricketer and commentator·Birthday: December 4·Generation X
Biography
Ajit Agarkar's cricket story is one of explosive bursts and enduring value. Emerging from Mumbai's rich cricketing soil, he announced himself not with towering height but with a whippy, quick arm action that generated surprising pace and late movement. His ODI career was a rollercoaster of match-winning spells and occasional waywardness, but the highs were monumental. He famously became the fastest bowler in the world to reach 50 ODI wickets, a record that stood for years, and etched his name in Indian cricket lore with a sensational match-winning 6-wicket haul against Australia in Melbourne in 2004. While his Test career was more sporadic, he delivered a famous century at Lord's, proving his all-round grit. After retirement, his sharp cricket mind found a new outlet in commentary and, later, as the chairman of the national selection committee, where he now shapes the next generation of Indian talent.
Generation X
1965–1980
The latchkey kids. Raised during divorce, recession, and the end of the Cold War. Skeptical, self-reliant, media-literate. They invented indie culture, grunge, and the early internet — then watched the Boomers take credit.
Ajit was born in 1977, placing them squarely in the Generation X. The events that shaped this generation — economic uncertainty, the end of the Cold War, and the rise of personal computing — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Ajit Was Born
The biggest hits of 1977
#1 Movie
Star Wars
Best Picture
Annie Hall
#1 TV Show
Happy Days
Ajit's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1977Born
Star Wars premieres; Elvis dies
Gas: $0.62/galHome: $31,800Min wage: $2.30/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"Tonight's the Night" — Rod StewartBest Picture: Annie Hall
1982Started school
Michael Jackson releases Thriller
Gas: $1.22/galHome: $55,200Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Physical" — Olivia Newton-JohnBest Picture: Gandhi
1990Became a teenager
Hubble Space Telescope launched; Germany reunifies
Gas: $1.15/galHome: $79,100Min wage: $3.80/hrPresident: George H.W. Bush"Hold On" — Wilson PhillipsBest Picture: Dances with Wolves
1993Could drive
European Union officially established
Gas: $1.11/galHome: $86,600Min wage: $4.25/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"I Will Always Love You" — Whitney HoustonBest Picture: Schindler's List
1995Could vote
Oklahoma City bombing; Windows 95 released
Gas: $1.15/galHome: $96,500Min wage: $4.25/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Gangsta's Paradise" — CoolioBest Picture: Braveheart
1998Turned 21
Google founded; Clinton impeachment
Gas: $1.06/galHome: $107,300Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Too Close" — NextBest Picture: Shakespeare in Love
2007Turned 30
iPhone released; Great Recession begins
Gas: $2.80/galHome: $172,600Min wage: $5.85/hrPresident: George W. Bush"Irreplaceable" — BeyonceBest Picture: No Country for Old Men
2017Turned 40
#MeToo movement; solar eclipse crosses the US
Gas: $2.42/galHome: $195,000Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Donald Trump"Shape of You" — Ed SheeranBest Picture: The Shape of Water
2026Age 49 today
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Held the world record for the fastest to 50 wickets in One Day Internationals (ODIs), reaching the milestone in just 23 matches.
- Took a match-winning 6 for 41 against Australia at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in 2004, a career-best performance.
- Scored a Test century at Lord's in 2002, becoming only the second Indian bowler at the time to score a hundred at the historic ground.
- Is India's third-highest wicket-taker in ODI cricket with 288 wickets.
- Was a member of the Indian squad that reached the final of the 2003 Cricket World Cup in South Africa.
Did You Know?
He was nicknamed 'Bombay Duck' early in his career after a series of low scores, a moniker he later overcame.
He married Indian model and actress Fatima Sana Shaikh, though they later divorced.
He took a hat-trick in an ODI against Australia in 2003-04, one of his several notable performances against that opponent.
He served as the captain of the Kolkata Knight Riders in the inaugural season of the Indian Premier League (IPL).
“You bowl to your field; sometimes the wicket comes, sometimes the runs are stopped.”
