Saud Shakeel: “We know Shaheen is a strike bowler”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Pakistan middle order batsman Saud Shakeel has no doubts about the quality of left-arm seamer Shaheen Shah Afridi, calling him a “strike bowler”.
Afridi has been heavily criticised in the past due to his lack of wickets and leaking too many runs.
However, Shakeel knows that when the 25-year-old is in form, he is extremely dangerous. This was evident during the 2025 Pakistan Super League (PSL), where Afridi captained the Lahore Qalandars and played an instrumental role in leading them to the title.
Afridi finished PSL 10 as the top wicket-taker with 19 wickets in 13 games at an average of 16.42 and an economy rate of 7.76.
“We know Shaheen is a strike bowler,” Shakeel, who led the Quetta Gladiators, was quoted as saying by A Sports.
After PSL 10, Afridi was ignored by the selectors for Pakistan’s three-match T20I series against Bangladesh in Lahore and the subsequent T20I tour of Bangladesh.
He ended up making a comeback in the white-ball tour of the West Indies and kicked off his campaign with two wickets in two T20Is at an average of 29 and an economy rate of 7.25.
As for the ODI series that followed, he snapped up four wickets in two games at an average of 21.50.
Pakistan are now involved in a T20I tri-series against the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Afghanistan in Sharjah, which will conclude on September 7.
In the one match he has played, Afridi took two wickets at an average of 10.50 and an economy rate of 5.25.
Once the T20I tri-series ends, the men in green will be involved in the 2025 Asia Cup, which will be held in the UAE from September 9 to 28.
Pakistan squad for UAE T20I tri-series and 2025 Asia Cup: Salman Ali Agha (captain), Abrar Ahmed, Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Hasan Nawaz, Hussain Talat, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Haris (wicketkeeper), Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Sahibzada Farhan, Saim Ayub, Salman Mirza, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Sufiyan Muqeem
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