Shahid Afridi: “The team is balanced, only Zaman Khan’s selection is missing from the squad”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Legendary big-hitting all-rounder Shahid Afridi believes Pakistan made a mistake by not including pace prospect Zaman Khan in their squad for the ongoing 2023 ICC Cricket World Cup.
Zaman, who is one of the reserve players for the tournament, is one of the most talked about fast bowlers in the country and has been earmarked as a star in the making.
So far, the 22-year-old from Mirpur has featured in six T20Is, where he has taken four wickets at an average of 32.50.
He also made his ODI debut in Pakistan’s must-win game against Sri Lanka during the Asia Cup, but went wicketless.
Despite his lack of international experience, Afridi still feels that Zaman would have been a useful asset for the men in green in the World Cup.
“The team is balanced, only Zaman Khan’s selection is missing from the squad,” he was quoted as saying by Geo Super.
Pakistan won their first two World Cup matches against the Netherlands and Sri Lanka before losing four straight to India, Australia, Afghanistan and South Africa.
They subsequently bounced back with wins over Bangladesh and New Zealand to keep their semi-final hopes alive.
Next up for Pakistan will be a clash against England on November 11 in Kolkata.
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