Aakash Chopra: “Full…swinging…fast. Shaheen Afridi is getting close to his best. Gurbaz’s toe agrees”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Former India batsman Aakash Chopra said Pakistan left-arm pace bowler Shaheen Shah Afridi is getting close to his very best following the toe-crushing yorker he bowled to Afghanistan opener Rahmanullah Gurbaz.
Gurbaz was hit on the left foot by an in-swinging delivery from Afridi and had to be carried off the pitch on his teammate’s back after receiving medical attention. He subsequently went for scans and was later seen wearing a protective boot.
That particular ball set social media ablaze as everyone was talking about the deadly accuracy of Afridi’s yorkers and how he looked incredibly good after spending months on the sidelines with a knee ligament injury.
Chopra was also in awe of the vicious ball the 22-year-old bowled to Gurbaz.
“Full…swinging…fast. Shaheen Afridi is getting close to his best. Gurbaz’s toe agrees,” he said on Twitter.
Gurbaz has been cleared of any bone fractures and is likely to be fit for Afghanistan’s T20 World Cup opener against England in Perth on Saturday.
Pakistan, meanwhile, will kick off their campaign against arch-rivals India on Sunday in Melbourne.
Pakistan’s 2022 T20 World Cup squad: Babar Azam (captain), Shadab Khan (vice-captain), Asif Ali, Fakhar Zaman, Haider Ali, Haris Rauf, Iftikhar Ahmed, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Hasnain, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Naseem Shah, Shaheen Shah Afridi and Shan Masood
Reserves: Mohammad Haris, Shahnawaz Dahani and Usman Qadir