Shoaib Akhtar: “We felt the absence of Shaheen [Afridi] and Naseem [Shah] – I mean, they are specialist T20 bowlers”
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Legendary Pakistan speedster Shoaib Akhtar believes the national team “felt the absence” of fast bowlers Shaheen Shah Afridi and Naseem Shah during their recent T20I assignments.
Fakhar Zaman: “As we have seen in cases like Naseem Shah and others in [the] 2023 World Cup, it makes a significant difference if one or a few players face fitness issues”
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Pakistan opening batsman Fakhar Zaman admitted that pace bowler Naseem Shah’s absence has had a significant impact on the national team.
Mohammad Hafeez: “Naseem is injured, but I don’t think you can pin losses on the absence of one player. Every player has to deliver”
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Pakistan team director Mohammad Hafeez insisted the team cannot blame their losses on the absence of fast bowler Naseem Shah.
Morne Morkel: “Naseem is a big loss”
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Former Pakistan bowling coach Morne Morkel said not having the services of pace bowler Naseem Shah is a “big loss” for the men in green.
Scott Styris: “The loss of Naseem Shah will be bigger than a lot of people think. Naseem Shah’s absence weakens them a lot”
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Former New Zealand all-rounder Scott Styris said he knows Pakistan are missing speedster Naseem Shah as he was arguably their best bowler over the past couple of months.
Ravi Shastri: “With Naseem Shah not there, the strength of Pakistan just diminishes a bit”
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Former India head coach Ravi Shastri said Pakistan’s overall strength has been diminished with the absence of fast bowler Naseem Shah.
Haris Rauf: “Shaheen’s absence will hurt Pakistan’s bowling attack”
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Pakistan fast bowler Haris Rauf has admitted that left-arm seamer Shaheen Shah Afridi’s absence for the three-Test series against England will hurt the team.
Misbah-ul-Haq: “The form Mohammad Hafeez is in, it [his absence] is definitely going to make a difference. We will miss him but it is an opportunity for someone else to rise up”
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Pakistan head coach Misbah-ul-Haq has admitted that big-hitter Mohammad Hafeez’s absence during the upcoming T20 series against South Africa “is definitely going to make a difference”.
Shadab Khan: “He [Babar Azam] is the main player in our batting unit but this is not an excuse for losing the series”
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Shadab Khan admitted that captain Babar Azam “is the main player in our batting unit”, but refused to use his absence as an excuse after Pakistan lost the T20 series against New Zealand.
Rilee Rossouw: “Umar [Akmal, who was suspended from the tournament on its eve under the PCB’s anti-corruption code] plays a massive role at Quetta Gladiators, and his absence in the middle order has maybe hampered them a little bit”
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South Africa batsman Rilee Rossouw believes that the Quetta Gladiators would have done a lot better in this year’s Pakistan Super League (PSL) if batsman Umar Akmal had played.