Alex Hales: “In my opinion, with the late swing he gets from a six-foot seven frame, Shaheen is one of the best new ball bowlers in the world”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Alex Hales, the England opening batsman, said Pakistan left-arm seamer Shaheen Shah Afridi is “one of the best new ball bowlers in the world” since he is capable of generating late swing at a height of 6 ft 7 in.
Hales admitted that this makes playing Afridi extremely difficult as he also has other weapons in his arsenal, including extra bounce.
The 23-year-old has time and time again taken early wickets for Pakistan or in domestic cricket in the first few overs he bowls, making him one of the toughest bowlers out there according to numerous players.
“In my opinion, with the late swing he gets from a six-foot seven frame, Shaheen is one of the best new ball bowlers in the world,” Hales was quoted as saying by Cricket Pakistan.
Afridi will now represent Pakistan in their two-Test series against Sri Lanka, which will be held in Galle and Colombo from July 16 to 28.
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