Shahid Afridi: “Our bench strength should be strong. Pakistan team should run even without Babar and Shaheen”
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Shahid Afridi, the legendary power-hitter, has urged Pakistan to stop relying on captain Babar Azam and left-arm seamer Shaheen Shah Afridi.
He noted that the team need to look beyond them and have a core group of bench players they can draft in should the duo be out of action for any reason.
Azam and Shaheen are Pakistan’s best batsman and bowler respectively, and have repeatedly delivered match-winning performances.
While their performances are important, Shahid reiterated that the men in green need to have back-ups in place that can shoulder big responsibilities and succeed at the international level.
“Our bench strength should be strong. Pakistan team should run even without Babar and Shaheen,” he was quoted as saying by Cricwick.
Pakistan recently beat Sri Lanka 2-0 in a Test series and Afghanistan 3-0 in an ODI series.
They then featured in the Asia Cup, where they fell just short of making it to the final.
Currently, the men in green are featuring in the 2023 ICC Cricket World Cup and started their campaign with an 81-run win over the Netherlands.
In that match, Azam made five while and Afridi took one wicket.
Pakistan will be back in action on October 10 when they face Sri Lanka in Hyderabad.
Pakistan Squad for 2023 ICC Cricket World Cup: Fakhar Zaman, Imam-ul-Haq, Abdullah Shafique, Babar Azam (capt), Mohammad Rizwan, Saud Shakeel, Iftikhar Ahmed, Salman Ali Agha, Shadab Khan, Usama Mir, Mohammad Nawaz, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Hasan Ali