Wasim Akram: “He doesn’t know how to move the ball away from the batter”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Legendary Pakistan left-arm fast bowler Wasim Akram has lashed out at Shaheen Shah Afridi, saying he “doesn’t know how to move the ball away from the batter”.
Afridi’s form with the ball has become a major talking point lately as he hasn’t been taking wickets regularly.
This is especially problematic for the men in green as the 25-year-old is seen as the leader of the pace attack in all three formats.
Wasim conceded that Afridi’s inability to bowl out-swing isn’t good enough as he is supposed to be an elite bowler who wins matches for Pakistan.
“He doesn’t know how to move the ball away from the batter,” the Sultan of Swing was quoted as saying by TOK Sports on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Afridi featured in the 2025 Champions Trophy and picked up two wickets in two matches at an average of 71.
He then took part in Pakistan’s five-match T20I series against New Zealand and took two wickets in four games at an average of 66.50 and an economy rate of 10.23.
Most recently, Afridi had been captaining the Lahore Qalandars in the 2025 Pakistan Super League (PSL) before the tournament was postponed.
In the nine games he played, he claimed nine wickets at an average of 24.33 and an economy rate of 8.11.
PSL 10 is expected to resume on May 17 and will end on May 25.
Lahore Qalandars Squad for PSL 10:
- Platinum: Daryl Mitchell, Fakhar Zaman, Shaheen Shah Afridi (captain)
- Diamond: Haris Rauf, Kusal Perera, Sikandar Raza
- Gold: Abdullah Shafique, Jahandad Khan, Zaman Khan
- Silver: Asif Afridi, Asif Ali, David Wiese, Muhammad Akhlaq, Rishad Hossain
- Emerging: Mohammad Azab, Momin Qamar
- Supplementary: Muhammad Naeem, Sam Billings, Salman Ali Mirza, Tom Curran
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