PAK vs NZ: Shaheen Afridi Blames Australia's Technology For Downfall In Pace Of Pakistan Bowlers

Pakistan pace spearhead Shaheen Afridi has expressed his surprise over his and his fellow Pakistan pacers’ struggle to bowl fast during the three-match Test series in Australia.

In the absence of Naseem Shah and Haris Rauf, Pakistan’s fast bowlers endured a tough time in Australia as they struggled for pace on the Australian wickets. During the first Test in Perth, the likes of Shaheen Afridi, Khurram Shahzad, Aamer Jamal, and Faheem Ashraf bowled in 130s and rarely managed to break the 140kph mark. Australia went on to score 487 runs in their first innings and won the game by 360 runs.

On the other hand, Australia’s pacers troubled the Pakistani batsmen with their pace. The likes of Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins, and Josh Hazlewood constantly hit the mid-140s in the Perth Test. The story remained the same for the other two games as well as Australia swept the three-match series.

Shaheen Afridi on lack of pace in Australia:

Shaheen Afridi averaged in the low 130 kph in the first innings of the first Test while his pace dropped down to the high 120s in the second innings. He managed to pick up just two wickets while conceding 172 runs in the series opener. In the second Test too, his pace was not really up to the mark before he was rested for the third Test.

With the tour of Australia done and dusted, Shaheen Afridi has expressed his surprise over his and his teammates’ failure to bowl fast. Speaking to the media ahead of the first T20I against New Zealand, the left-arm pacer stated that he and his teammates could not believe when the speedometer showed their speed on the giant screen.

“To be honest, at first when we were bowling, we were observing the board and telling ourselves ‘is this us?’. We couldn’t figure it out. Someone whose body has been bowling from the beginning and could only bowl at 132-33 even after applying so much force, we were surprised, thinking whether it was decided from the start that the pace wouldn’t be too high,” said Shaheen Afridi.

Watch:

Shaheen Afridi says Pakistan pacers were shocked to see speed guns in Australia, which were showing their speeds as 130KPH on every delivery (laughs) ???

Do you think the speed guns were faulty or did Shaheen's pace really drop? #NZvsPAK pic.twitter.com/8lxEgjNlA4

— Farid Khan (@_FaridKhan) January 11, 2024

Meanwhile, the five-match T20I series against New Zealand will mark Shaheen Afridi’s first T20I series as Pakistan’s full-time captain. He was named as Pakistan’s T20I captain after Babar Azam resigned from the post in all three formats.