Aaqib Javed: “We have three of the best pace-bowling options in today’s game with Shaheen, Naseem and Haris. It reminds me of the ’90s troika [Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis and himself]”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Pakistan head coach Aaqib Javed believes Shaheen Shah Afridi, Naseem Shah and Haris Rauf have the potential to be as good as Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis and himself.
The trio are Pakistan’s go-to speedsters in limited overs cricket and have taken plenty of wickets between themselves.
However, the trio have been criticised for their consistency and for leaking too many runs when bowling.
Despite this, Aaqib sees great promise in Afridi, Naseem and Rauf, and hopes they keep getting better as time goes on.
“We have three of the best pace-bowling options in today’s game with Shaheen, Naseem and Haris. It reminds me of the ’90s troika [Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis and himself]. They have time to reach that level but have all the ability to repeat those performances,” he was quoted as saying by ESPNcricinfo.
During the 2025 Champions Trophy, Afridi, Naseem and Rauf took two wickets in two matches at an average of 71, 50 and 67.50 respectively.
As for the five-match T20I series against New Zealand, Afridi finished with two wickets in four games at an average of 66.50, while Rauf claimed eight wickets in four matches at an average of 12.25.
Naseem was not picked for the T20Is, which Pakistan lost 4-1.
Pakistan are now playing a three-match ODI series against New Zealand. Naseem and Rauf were included in the team, but Afridi failed to make the cut.
In the 1st ODI in Napier, which the men in green lost by 73 runs, Naseem and Rauf snapped up one and two wickets respectively.
The 2nd ODI between Pakistan and New Zealand will be played on April 2 in Hamilton.
Pakistan Squad for T20I Series against New Zealand: Hasan Nawaz, Omair Yousuf, Mohammad Haris, Abdul Samad, Salman Ali Agha (captain), Irfan Khan Niazi, Khushdil Shah, Shadab Khan, Abbas Afridi, Jahandad Khan, Mohammad Ali, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Haris Rauf, Sufiyan Muqeem, Abrar Ahmed, Usman Khan
Pakistan Squad for ODI Series against New Zealand: Mohammad Rizwan (captain), Salman Ali Agha, Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Akif Javed, Babar Azam, Faheem Ashraf, Imam-ul-Haq, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Ali, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Irfan Khan Niazi, Naseem Shah, Sufiyan Muqeem, Tayyab Tahir