Tim Southee: “Those two guys that you mentioned, Shaheen Shah and Trent Boult, are quality bowlers and have caused a lot of players headaches over the years”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Tim Southee, the New Zealand speedster, admitted that Pakistan left-arm seamer Shaheen Shah Afridi causes big “headaches” since he is a difficult bowler to face.
Afridi is Pakistan’s pace spearhead and utilises his swing, extra bounce, deadly yorkers and overall pace, which can reach 150 kph, to get plenty of wickets.
Southee classed New Zealand left-arm pace bowler Trent Boult in the same category as Afridi, noting that both quicks are very handy as batsmen don’t usually face many left-handed bowlers.
“I don’t know what it is, but it was always handy to have a left-armer — something probably people don’t face a lot of. Those two guys that you mentioned, Shaheen Shah and Trent Boult, are quality bowlers and have caused a lot of players headaches over the years,” he was quoted as saying by Cricket Pakistan.
Afridi recently took six wickets in Pakistan’s two-Test series against Sri Lanka at an average of 37.33.
He subsequently went on to pick up six wickets in three ODIs against Afghanistan at an average of 16.33.
In his latest assignment, he claimed 10 wickets in five matches during the Asia Cup at an average of 23.50.
Afridi is now in action in the 2023 ICC Cricket World Cup and has taken two wickets in Pakistan’s first two matches, with one each coming in the 81-run win over the Netherlands and the other in the six-wicket victory over Sri Lanka.
Pakistan’s next match will be against India on October 14 in Ahmedabad.
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