On Thursday, in the lead-up to the highly anticipated India-Pakistan cricket match at Ahmedabad’s Narendra Modi Stadium, the Pakistan cricket team held its first practice session. On that day, Babar Azam and Shadab Khan, along with nearly ten players, were engaged in fielding and throwing practice. Bowling coach Marven Marcelline supervised Shaheen Afridi’s pace bowling practice.
During the training session, when Shaheen Afridi advanced towards the boundary, several media personnel requested a selfie. In response, Afridi said, “Sure, take a selfie, but only after taking five wickets.” This news was reported by Indian media outlet Revsportz.
Shahid Afridi’s brother and former Pakistani cricketer, Riaz Afridi, spoke about his younger brother and said, “Shahin is my younger brother, and I have been coaching him since childhood. He had everything it takes to become a star. Now, he’s on the path to becoming an even bigger star. Watch his performance, especially against India. Even Indian players respect him… everyone loves Shahin. I want him to bring the World Cup home.”
Shahin Afridi has been practicing taking wickets early in the innings. So far, he has played four matches against India. In the 2018 Asia Cup, he was wicketless in the first encounter, but he played a pivotal role in Pakistan’s win over India in the 2021 T20 World Cup, taking three wickets for 21 runs in 4 overs. Last year in the T20 World Cup, he couldn’t perform well due to injury, giving away 35 runs in 4 overs. This year, in the Asia Cup, he took 4 wickets for 35 runs in 10 overs against India but the match was washed out due to rain.
Shahin Afridi has dismissed India’s top order early in the innings in the past as well. Today’s match is expected to see similar performances from him. Riaz Afridi also expects his brother to perform well and said, “Shahin is a transformed player now. He will be bowling according to his plans against Rohit Sharma, which he has been doing in the past. Rohit is one of the world’s best players. I hope he will get Rohit out soon.”
The India-Pakistan match is scheduled to start at 2:30 PM local time in Bangladesh.
