Pakistan pacer Shaheen Afridi finds himself at a crossroads as he grapples with a series of setbacks in recent times. From losing his captaincy to potentially losing his spot in the team, Afridi’s journey has been tumultuous, to say the least.
The first blow came with his unsuccessful stint as international captain, marked by a disappointing defeat in the T20I series against New Zealand.
Following that, under his captaincy Lahore Qalandars failed to defend the Pakistan Super League (PSL) title and ended at the bottom of the table.
Consequently, he lost the T20I captaincy and now, reports hint at Afridi’s absence from the initial T20Is against New Zealand, attributed to a rotational policy aimed at managing player workload ahead of the T20 World Cup.
Although Shaheen Afridi is set to play the last three T20Is of the five-match series, speculations loom over his future in the Pakistan cricket team, with suggestions that he may find himself sidelined altogether following a reported fallout with Babar Azam.
While initially slated to miss the first few matches as part of a rotation policy, there are whispers that this move is just the beginning of his gradual exclusion from the squad.
The relationship between Azam and Afridi soured reported following Azam’s reinstatement as captain by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) ahead of New Zealand series.
Behind the scenes, sources close to Afridi reveal a sense of discontent with the PCB’s handling of his captaincy removal, citing communication lapses and a fabricated statement issued in his name.
While the PCB acknowledged its internal mistake, Afridi remains disheartened by the ordeal. Moreover, the board defended its decision to remove Afridi as a strategic move to prioritize player well-being and performance longevity.
Emphasizing Afridi’s significance as a star fast bowler, the PCB underscores the importance of rotation and rest to maintain peak performance, particularly for fast bowlers like Afridi, who have faced injury concerns in recent years.
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