Azhar Ali: “Shaheen and Haris have not been bowling well”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Former Pakistan top order batsman Azhar Ali has called out the pace duo of Shaheen Shah Afridi and Haris Rauf, saying they “have not been bowling well.”
Afridi recently captained the Lahore Qalandars in the 2024 Pakistan Super League (PSL), while Rauf was part of the team as well until being ruled out of the tournament after dislocating his shoulder.
In the nine matches he featured in, Afridi took 14 wickets at an average of 22.14 and an economy rate of 8.61.
As for Rauf, he finished with two wickets in four games at an average of 66 and an economy rate of 9.42.
Considering the Qalandars failed to make the playoffs after winning just one game out of the 10 they played, Azhar conceded that Afridi and Rauf have to be held responsible as they are the team’s go-to speedsters.
“Shaheen and Haris have not been bowling well,” he was quoted as saying by Cricket Pakistan.
Pakistan’s next assignment will be a five-match T20I series against New Zealand, which will take place in Rawalpindi and Lahore from April 18 to 27.
Afridi won’t be leading the men in green in the series as Babar Azam replaced him as Pakistan’s limited overs captain.
Lahore Qalandars Squad for PSL 9: Shaheen Shah Afridi (captain), Fakhar Zaman, Rassie van der Dussen, Haris Rauf, David Wiese, Sahibzada Farhan, Sikandar Raza, Abdullah Shafique, Zaman Khan, Mirza Tahir Baig, Mohammad Imran, Ahsan Hafeez, Dan Lawrence, Jahandad Khan, Syed Faridoun, Shai Hope, Kamran Ghulam, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Tayyab Abbas