Azhar Mahmood: “I think Shaheen bowled well, I don’t think we will replace him with Hasnain”

Image courtesy of: ESPNcricinfo

Pakistan bowling coach Azhar Mahmood has revealed that it is unlikely pace bowler Mohammad Hasnain will replace fellow seamer Shaheen Shah Afridi for the national team’s clash against New Zealand on Wednesday.

Hasnain is still waiting to make his World Cup debut as he has not featured in any of Pakistan’s six games thus far.

As for Afridi, he has taken three wickets in two games at an average of 41.33.

Mahmood also feels that Afridi bowled well in Pakistan’s last World Cup match against South Africa, where he finished with figures of 1-54 off eight overs.

“Shaheen bowled well in the last game, we need to be more consistent. We have a habit of chopping and changing if performances are iffy, we need to give our players confidence,” Mahmood was quoted as saying by PakPassion. “I think Shaheen bowled well, I don’t think we will replace him with Hasnain. We’ll decide tomorrow if we want to play four pacers.”

Pakistan’s clash against New Zealand will take place at Edgbaston, and they will need to beat the Black Caps, who have remained undefeated after six games, if they want to keep their hopes of qualifying for the World Cup semi-finals alive.

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