Asia Cup 2022: Pakistan Will Miss Shaheen Afridi, He Has Been Their Main Bowler - Wasim Akram
Updated - 24 Aug 2022, 08:39 PM
Former Pakistan cricketer Wasim Akram believes that Pakistan will miss Shaheen Afridi the most during the powerplay. In this phase, he is capable of doing a lot of damage in the shortest format of the game.
Shaheen proved it the last time India met Pakistan by dismissing both KL Rahul and Rohit Sharma in a matter of deliveries. He pegged India back with the new ball and they couldn’t recover from the same.
“Pakistan will miss Shaheen Afridi. He is important because he takes wickets with the new ball. In this format, everyone says that if you have to restrict the opposition, you have to get wickets with the new ball.”
“That’s what he does, he attacks the stumps. He has been consistent across formats, he has been the main bowler for Pakistan,” Akram said on Star Sports.
Wasim Akram defends Pak management after Shaheen’s injury
Following Shaheen’s knee injury during the series against Sri Lanka, the fans and media criticized Pakistan team management for overburdening the 21-year-old. However, Akram defended the decision to play him across formats.
“The think-tank has been criticised for not managing his workload. But he is 21 (22), he has to play cricket. He suffered a knee injury.”
“I never had knee injury as a fast bowler, but those who had tell me that it takes time to heal. And when you come back, you are always scared of injuring yourself again. Until you are 100 per cent fit, you won’t be able to bowl,” he added.
Pakistan squad for Asia Cup: Babar Azam (C), Fakhar Zaman, Haider Ali, Khushdil Shah, Asif Ali, Iftikhar Ahmed, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Wasim Jr, Mohammad Rizwan, Haris Rauf, Naseem Shah, Shahnawaz Dahani, Usman Qadir, Mohammad Hasnain
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Pakistan national cricket team Shaheen Afridi Wasim Akram
