Pakistan cricket veteran Shahid Afridi is understandably unhappy with the way the country’s T20I side has performed in their Asia Cup match against India on Sunday. While most discussions post the match have not been on cricket but on the Suryakumar Yadav-led side deciding to not shake the hands of their opponents, Afridi chose to concentrate on Shaheen and the state of the sport in Pakistan.
Shaheen Afridi bowled only two overs in the match, in which he got hit for 23 runs sans any wicket. However, his real exploits came with the willow. The 25-year-old struck four sixes, scoring a total of 33 in 16 deliveries. His innings played a crucial role in ensuring the Pakistan innings did not end with a humiliating below-100 score against their eternal rivals.
‘Don’t want runs from Shaheen…’ Shahid
Despite acknowledging that Pakistan could have suffered an embarassment if not for Shaheen’s batting, Shahid Afridi said in an interview with a Pakistani TV channel that wickets, and not runs are what he expects from the young cricketer.
“I don’t want runs from Shaheen, I want bowling from Shaheen, I don’t want bowling from Sam Ayub, I want runs from him. Shaheen should understand that his role is to swing the new ball and he should know how to take wickets by moving the ball forward. He should focus on his game plan,” the former all-rounder said. He also called on Shaheen to use ‘mind games’ if needed to get batters out.
Afridi unhappy with Pakistan’s domestic cricket
The former Pakistan captain is also unhappy with the direction domestic cricket in the country has taken. In the same interview, he blasted the quality of first-class cricket in Pakistan, saying that the same is “third class”.
He called on the Pakistan Cricket Board to invest more in cricket within the country and ensure young cricketers are made aware of the challenges of plying their trade on the international stage.
Pakistan’s dismal T20I record against India
Pakistan’s recent record in T20Is against India shows the stark difference in quality between the two sides. In the last 10 T20I matches between them, Pakistan have managed only two wins. Their last T20I victory against India came in the Super Four of the 2022 T20I Asia Cup in Dubai. Even in ODIs, the results are similar. In the last 10 ODI encounters betweeen India and Pakistan, the former emerged victorious on eight occasions while one match ended in ‘no result’. Pakistan managed only one victory (in the final of the 2017 Champions Trophy).
Up next…
Next in the tournament, both teams have relatively weaker teams to deal with. While Pakistan will face the UAE tomorrow, India take on Oman on Friday, September 19.