PAK vs NZ: Ricky Ponting Outlines The Important Player That Can Guide Pakistan To T20 World Cup Victory

Speedster Shaheen Afridi has been identified by Australia legend Ricky Ponting as the player who must perform if Pakistan is to win a second ICC Men’s T20 World Cup title in Australia.

Afridi gave his greatest performance of the competition so far on Sunday against Bangladesh, bowling with incredible pace and collecting outstanding figures of 4/22. That performance helped Pakistan secure the last position in the tournament’s semifinals.

Pakistan faces an in-form New Zealand at the SCG on Wednesday, and Ponting believes Afridi is the pivotal man in that match.

“He might say he’s not back to 100 percent yet but from what I’ve seen, he looks like he’s getting along brilliantly and he now holds the key to Pakistan progressing in the tournament,” Ponting added.

Afridi injured his right knee while fielding in the first Test against Sri Lanka in Galle in July, and the 22-year-old admitted his recovery was delayed because he could scarcely walk afterwards.

“He’s got through really well so far”: Ricky Ponting

Afridi’s wicketless performance in Pakistan’s first two tournament games against India and Zimbabwe may have cast some doubt on his ability to quickly recover, but Ricky Ponting always had faith in the left abilities armer’s

“(I never had any doubt) as you just know what he’s capable of when he’s out there on the field,” Ricky Ponting said.

“And, as I previously stated, even if he’s not at 100 percent, if he’s functioning at 90 percent, he’ll still have a greater impact on games than others because of how talented he is.”

“So look, he might have had a few concerns in the back of his mind, and the Pakistan leadership and coaching group might have had some concerns as well, but not any longer.”

“He’s done pretty well so far, and hopefully they have two more games,” Ricky Ponting added.