Shane Watson: “Facing Boom Boom a lot throughout my career, you never felt like you would get a free ball to hit at all”

Image courtesy of: Zimbio

Former Australia cricketer Shane Watson has said that it was a nightmare to face legendary Pakistan spin-bowling all-rounder Shahid Afridi since he gave away no freebies.

Watson’s comments come after he included Afridi in his top five T20 bowlers of all time, with the Pakistan icon securing the number two spot.

The ex-Australia all-rounder admitted that Afridi had so many tricks up his sleeve and plenty of variations in his arsenal, which made him such a difficult bowler to attack.

“Facing Boom Boom a lot throughout my career, you never felt like you would get a free ball to hit at all….His variations, his wrong ones, his sliders and his leggies, he was just always competing,” Watson said in a YouTube video for T20 Stars as quoted by Cricket Pakistan.

“So Boom Boom Afridi, how can he not be one of your favourite players? He has taken so many wickets at a great economy rate through such a long career so I love him and he is the man.”

Watson picked Sri Lanka seamer Lasith Malinga as his top T20 bowler of all time, while India’s Jasprit Bumrah was at three and the West Indies duo of Dwayne Bravo and Sunil Narine occupied fourth and fifth place respectively.

ALSO CHECK OUT: “He is the perfect T20 bowler”, Shane Watson says about mega famous Pakistan spinner