DUBAI: Pakistan ace pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi has replaced his Indian counterpart Jasprit Bumrah in the updated International Cricket Council (ICC) Test Bowling Rankings to claim the third rank.
Left-arm pacer Shaheen continued his march in the Test bowling charts as he claimed his career-best third spot in the longest format of the game.
Shaheen, who dazzled in the first Test of the ongoing two-match series against Sri Lanka by taking four wickets for 79 runs, has been rewarded for his outstanding bowling performance as he has moved up to replace Indian pacer Bumrah.
Australia’s Test captain and right-arm pacer Pat Cummins still dominates the charts with 891 rating points, followed by Indian spinner Ravichandran Ashwin.
It is important to note that Shaheen’s absence from the second Test due to a knee injury could make it difficult for the left-arm pacer to hold onto third place, as his lead over Bumrah is only eight rating points.
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GALLE: Pakistan all-format captain Babar Azam confirmed left-arm spinner, Nauman Ali, as the replacement of ace pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi, who was ruled out of the second Test against Sri Lanka due to a knee injury.
Babar, in a Pakistan Cricket Board’s (PCB) released video statement, acknowledged Shaheen’s absence will be dearly missed while confirming that the touring side will add another spinner to the Playing XI for the second Test.
“Shaheen is our main bowler who provides us early breakthroughs. Unfortunately, he is not available so we have added another spinner, Nauman Ali and he will be playing tomorrow,” Babar confirmed.
“We will go with two pacers tomorrow and try to continue our match-winning performance,” he maintained.
Babar then went on to comment on the Green Shirts’ historic and record-breaking triumph over Sri Lanka in the first Test while claiming that the team always tries its best to produce such performances.
“As a team, we focus on record-breaking performances. Every player takes his responsibility sincerely and tries to give his hundred percent,” Babar asserted.
“As a unit, we are doing good so far. In the end, there are also some weak areas and we will try to work hard and come up more strongly,” he concluded.
The second Test between Pakistan and the hosts Sri Lanka will be played from July 24 to 28 at the same venue, meanwhile, the Green Shirts have a 1-0 lead in the two-match Test series after their historic win in the first match.
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GALLE: Pakistan head coach Saqlain Mushtaq confirmed the unavailability of the ace pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi for the second Test against Sri Lanka, while also acknowledging that the touring side will miss the left-arm pacer.
Saqlain, while talking to the media here ahead of the second ODI, asserted that the touring bowlers will miss the services of the left-arm pacer as he guides them throughout in the games.
“No doubt, our bowlers will miss Shaheen in the second Test. He is our main bowler and he guides his fellowmen as well. Definitely, the bowlers will miss his presence as he brings in a lot of charisma to the unit,” Saqlain stated.
The national head coach then remained reluctant to the changes for the second Test except for the replacement of injured Afridi, while emphasizing that the final playing XI will be decided after analyzing the pitch.
“We have looked at the pitch but nothing is decided as of yet. Obviously, Shaheen’s replacement is there but apart from this, we will sit and decide before announcing the final XI,” said Saqlain.
“Our players showed great determination, potential and execution of plans to win the last game. From Abdullah Shafique to tail-ender Naseem Shah and then Hassan Ali, Yasir Shah and others, everyone fought hard to achieve a well-deserved victory,” he added.
It is pertinent to mention here that ace pacer Shaheen sustained a gruelling knee injury during the first Test against Sri Lanka, which resulted in his exclusion from the second Test. According to the sources, Nauman Ali will receive a call-up in the playing XI as Shaheen’s replacement.
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LONDON: Former England captain and renowned commentator Nasser Hussain heaped praises on Pakistan left-arm speedsters Shaheen Shah Afridi and Mohammad Amir while claiming that India have a history of struggling against left-arm pacers.
Hussain, in a press conference, post India’s historic ODI series victory over England in their backyard after 2014-15, heaped praises on the bench strength of the Men in Blue.
The former England captain also advised the touring side to play courageously and suggested their batters become familiar with left-arm bowlers.
“India are a very strong team, but they need to learn from what happened in the past. In the last T20 World Cup in the UAE they were a bit timid with the bat, so they need to stop being that,” Hussain said.
“When you have Pandya and Pant in the middle order and then Jadeja that rope to follow, you don’t need to be timid at the top,” he stressed.
Hussain then went on to mention a few occasions when left-arm pacers wreaked havoc over the Indian batting line-up and gave reference to the Pakistan-India clash at the previous year’s ICC T20 World Cup and ICC Champions Trophy 2017.
“They need to play to left arm [pace bowling] a little bit better. History tells you that Shaheen Shah Afridi blew them away one evening in Dubai, Mohammad Amir blew them away one afternoon at the Oval in a final, and Reece Topley has blown them away here [at Old Trafford],” he stated.
“They need to be a bit more tensed to their batting, so some of their seamers will come down in a T20, in the last two overs with 20 to win. One of those seamers will need them to get across the line,” he added.
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PESHAWAR: The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) Police on Monday appointed the left-arm pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi as the honorary officer.
In a high-profile ceremony, the KPK Police chief Muazzam Khan heaped praises on the left-arm pacer before announcing him as the goodwill ambassador of the provincial law-enforcement agency.
Following the honorary achievement, Shaheen thanked the police and lauded them for their services in safeguarding the citizens.
“I have links with police as my father served as a policeman and my brother is an active policeman,” Shaheen said.
“Police officers and all security officials are the real heroes of our country. They deserve all the respect and honour,” he added.
Besides Shaheen who attended the ceremony donning the police uniform, the left-handed opener Fakhar Zaman was also present at the occasion.
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DUBAI: Pakistan’s left-arm pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi continued his march upwards in the ICC ODI Bowling Rankings as he claimed his career-best third spot in the latest rankings, released on Monday.
The absence of England’s right-arm seamer Chris Woakes from the recent ODI series against the Netherlands has resulted in him dropping down two spots in the bowling rankings.
Following his demotion, New Zealand’s Matt Henry and Shaheen both jumped a place up to claim the second and third spot respectively.
New Zealand left-arm pacer Trent Boult, on the other hand, continued his dominance in the ODIs as he still leads the bowling charts with 726 rating points, while Henry and Shaheen have 683 and 681 points respectively.
In Tests, however, the Pakistan speedster currently holds the fourth spot.
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DUBAI: Following his consistent run in Test and ODI cricket, Pakistan’s left-arm pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi has claimed the fourth position in the latest bowling rankings of both formats announced by the International Cricket Council (ICC), here on Wednesday.
Shaheen has been elevated from fifth to the fourth spot in the latest Test rankings released by the ICC, as New Zealand pacer Kyle Jamieson slipped from third to sixth following a forgetful series with the ball for the pacer.
Shaheen has now occupied the fourth spot in Test rankings with 827 rating points as Jamieson’s ratings fell to 796; allowing the former to make a move upwards.
Australia’s Pat Cummins remained at the top of the Test bowlers’ rankings, followed by India’s Ravichandran Ashwin and the recently promoted pacer Jasprit Bumrah at the third.
In ODIs, however, Shaheen jumped two places up to claim his career-best fourth rank with 681 rating points.
New Zealand pacer Trent Boult, has retained the top spot, while Australia’s Josh Hazlewood improved a place to claim the second position.
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LAHORE: Pakistan’s left-arm pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi has set his sight on becoming the best bowler of the upcoming home ODI series against the West Indies.
While speaking with the media here, Shaheen stated that his goal is to take as many wickets as possible in order to be named the series’ best bowler.
“I will try to be the best bowler of the series by getting the maximum number of wickets in the series,” he expressed.
“The weather is hot but we are looking forward to playing good cricket in it. It would be a tough challenge for the fast bowlers to bowl long spells in summer but as a professional, we are ready to face it,” he maintained.
Shaheen further opined on his participation in the County Championship and claimed his purpose was to gain valuable experience.
“The reason behind playing county cricket was to gain experience as it would help us when it comes to playing Test matches in England,” Shaheen claimed.
The left-arm pacer then termed the upcoming ODI series an important one for the Green Shirts as it is a part of the World Cup Super League.
“I don’t consider any team as weak. This series is important for us to qualify for the World Cup,” he said.
The pacer also shared his views on playing international cricket in Multan for the first time and termed the fans ‘very supportive’.
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HOVE: The left-arm Pakistani pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi came up against the Indian middle-order batter Cheteshwar Pujara in the ongoing County Championship 2022.
Shaheen, who is representing Middlesex in the county championship is up against Sussex, which include his countryman Mohammad Rizwan and Indian batter Pujara; engaging in a battle with the latter.
A lot of buzzes were built up before the match between the two sides, as fans were looking forward to seeing Rizwan or Pujara take on Shaheen.
In the second innings, the fans finally got a chance to witness a face-off between Pujara and Shaheen as the left-arm pacer went hard at the batter but Pujara made he did not fall prey.
Taking to Twitter, the official handle of the County Championship shared the footage of the battle between Shaheen and Pujara.
“Shaheen Afridi vs Cheteshwar Pujara. A battle you don’t want to miss,” the caption read.
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HOVE: Pakistan’s wicket-keeper batter Mohammad Rizwan and the left-arm pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi, who are representing Sussex and Middlesex respectively, will come face to face in the Round 5 of the ongoing County Championship 2022.
Middlesex and Sussex, who are set to face each other in the fifth round of the ongoing championship will see an anticipated face-off between two Pakistanis.
Shaheen, who has been in an exceptional form while representing Middlesex in the ongoing championship will find a major challenge in the form of Rizwan in the opposing lineup.
The fifth round fixture between Middlesex and Sussex will also provide a rare face-off between India’s Cheteshwar Pujara and Pakistan’s Shaheen.
It is pertinent to mention here that Shaheen has picked 10 wickets in three matches for the Middlesex, while Pujara is also in red hot form as the Southpaw has struck two double centuries in a brief four-match stint so far. Rizwan, on the other hand, who had been off-colour, has found his rhythm as he scored a brilliant 79 in the latest outing.
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