Vernon Philander: “I encouraged him to go for it, to go for gold”
Image courtesy of: Zimbio
Former South Africa speedster Vernon Philander said he encouraged Pakistan seamer Shaheen Shah Afridi to “go for gold”.
He worked closely with the 22-year-old during his stint as Pakistan’s bowling consultant during the 2021 T20 World Cup.
Afridi is the reigning ICC Men’s Cricketer of the Year and Philander is excited to see how far the left-arm swing specialist will go in his career.
“I encouraged him to go for it, to go for gold,” he told PakPassion.
In the recent series against Australia, Afridi took nine wickets in three Tests at an average of 36.44.
He then picked up six wickets in two ODIs at an average of 17.16 before finishing off with figures of 2-21 in the one-off T20 International.
He is now playing for Middlesex in the County Championship and has claimed 10 wickets in two matches at an average of 21.60. Â