Afridi also singled out captain Babar Azam as crucial to Pakistan's success
25 May, 2024
PHOTO: FILE
Former cricket star Shahid Afridi is upbeat about Pakistan's fast bowling squad, calling it the best in the world. He's optimistic about their performance in the upcoming ICC Men's T20 World Cup, set to take place in the USA and West Indies next month.
Afridi praised Pakistan for picking five top-notch fast bowlers for the tournament. Led by Shaheen Afridi, the team includes Naseem Shah, Haris Rauf, Abbas Afridi, and Mohammad Amir.
"I think in any cricket team in the world, nobody has such a strong bowling line-up. All our four fast bowlers have a lot of skill and even the bowlers sitting on the bench like Abbas (Afridi)...has a lot of skill with a good slower ball," Afridi said.
Looking ahead to the T20 World Cup, Afridi believes Pakistan can match or even exceed their performance from 2022, where they reached the final but lost to England.
"I feel Pakistan should make the final. The reason is that the conditions (in West Indies and USA) suit our team. If we look at the spinners in our team, they are outstanding. They might not be in form but I know they will return in form. If we talk about fast bowling, it’s an incredible attack. In batting, we have great strength," he further added.
While Afridi acknowledged the team's overall strength, he pointed out the need to improve the strike rate during specific phases of the game.
"The thing that bothers me is the strike rate of our batters, especially in between the seven to thirteen over phase. I hope that the strike rate improves in that phase. In terms of runs per over, eight or nine runs per over are needed but still Pakistan are my favourite," Afridi said.
Afridi also singled out captain Babar Azam as crucial to Pakistan's success. He praised Azam's leadership and urged him to lead the team to victory.
"All players in the team are important. But if you look at the performances in the recent past, Babar (Azam). (Mohammad) Rizwan, Fakhar (Zaman), Shaheen (Afridi), Naseem Shah, Haris Rauf, Shadab (Khan) - all of them play an important role and will be key (for Pakistan) at the World Cup.But if I had to pick one, I would pick the captain Babar Azam, because he is the leader. I want him to perform well, make timely decisions which will take the team to victory," he concluded.
