Shan Masood: “If you are surviving Shaheen’s first over and also hitting a six, it means that you are playing very well as he is the number one bowler in the world right now”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Shan Masood said there are not many batsmen in the world who can hit Pakistan left-arm seamer Shaheen Shah Afridi for a six.
He noted that this is because the 23-year-old, in his opinion, is currently the best bowler in the world.
Masood added that Afridi’s elite level bowling makes it tough for batsmen to even survive his first over as he has all the tricks in the book.
The pace spearhead, who hails from Khyber Agency in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, bowls at speeds of 150 kph, can swing the ball both ways and gets extra bounce due to his height.
“If you are surviving Shaheen’s first over and also hitting a six, it means that you are playing very well as he is the number one bowler in the world right now,” Masood was quoted as saying by Cricket Pakistan.
Both Masood and Afridi recently played for Pakistan in their five-match ODI series against New Zealand, which the men in green won 4-1.
Masood scored 52 runs in three matches at an average of 17.33, while Afridi took eight wickets in four ODIs at an average of 24.50.
Both Masood and Afridi have been picked for Pakistan’s next assignment, which is a two-Test series against Sri Lanka in July.
Pakistan Squad for Sri Lanka Test Series:Â Babar Azam (c), Mohammad Rizwan (vc & wk), Aamer Jamal, Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Hasan Ali, Imam-ul-Haq, Muhammad Huraira, Mohammad Nawaz, Naseem Shah, Noman Ali, Salman Ali Agha, Sarfaraz Ahmed (wk), Saud Shakeel, Shaheen Shah Afridi and Shan Masood