Shaheen Shah Afridi needed just eight deliveries to get to 100 Test wickets on the breezy first morning at the picturesque Galle Stadium. The much-awaited milestone – remember he was stuck on 99 for almost a year due to injury – has elevated the lanky 23-year-old pacer to new heights.
The wicket of Nishan Madushka brought a huge smile on the already cherubic face of Shaheen, and that was followed by the trademark celebration, spreading his hands like wings and kissing his hand while waving them in the air.
The feat has included Shaheen among the elite Test fast bowlers of Pakistan, number 19 in this list of 100 or more wickets, and that is a distinguished one led by Wasim Akram, who took 414 wickets. Wasim is someone who Shaheen is mostly compared with. Since his debut in 2018, Shaheen has become an all-format, go-to-bowler for Pakistan. He is clothed with many attributes, but he still has a long way to go to be compared to the indomitable Wasim Akram.
Galle was the unlucky place for Shaheen last year. He hurt his knee a great deal, and the ensuing period was full of bitterness. Shahid Afridi, Shaheen’s father-in-law and a great in his own self, blasted Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) for neglecting the rehab that the pacer underwent in the UK. It was blamed that Shaheen was left alone, and no financial assistance was lent. Shaheen was shockingly taken as a mere passenger to the Netherlands in a superfluous way and then to the UAE for Asia Cup. The only thing achieved on that useless exercise was that Virat Kohli and other Indian players had an interaction with Shaheen.
PCB clarified that it is the norm that an injured player completes a rehab, and then all his expenses are reimbursed.
He could not play a single game, and the baleful assumptions were that Shaheen might miss the Twenty20 World Cup. He did make it to Australia for the World Cup and gradually attained rhythm as Pakistan sneaked into the final.
But calamity struck once more as Shaheen fell injured; the same knee was twisted while taking a catch at the MCG during the final. It was a juncture where Pakistan needed him the most as they were defending a paltry 138-run target against the eventual champions, England.
The match-winner missed all of the Test season Pakistan had at home, three Tests against England – all lost for Pakistan’s first home whitewash – and two against New Zealand – both drawn. That badly pushed Pakistan into the seventh spot in the World Test championship in 2023.
That sordid episode highlighted the need for proper management of fast bowlers, especially the likes of Shaheen and Naseem Shah. Both are Pakistan’s main weapons for this year’s World Cup in India and Pakistan will only stand a good chance of winning the mega event if Shaheen and Naseem are properly managed and land fully fit in India.
The Diamond:
“Shaheen is a diamond in the rough,” the compliment comes from no great fast bowler Ian Raphael Bishop after Shaheen took 19 wickets in the two-match Test series in the Caribbean in 2021.
Bishop went on: “The guy is 21 years old. When I was 21 years old, I knew nothing about Test cricket, even though I was playing the game. Sometimes you can see something in someone even though at the moment they are not the great player you want them to be.”
The lanky fast bowler had done too good to receive such praise.
That praise from Bishop came during the West Indies series that Shaheen spearheaded to help Pakistan achieve a 1-1 series draw. It could have been, in fact, should have been, a clear-cut 2-0 series win had Pakistan not dropped crucial catches and lost the first Test by a narrow one-wicket margin.
His 18 wickets in the series — eight in the first game and 10 in the second with a career-best innings figure of 6-51 — highlighted his progress attained by leaps and bounds. His match haul of 10 for 94 – his first ten-for – helped him shoot up ten spots to No. 8 in the ICC rankings.
Other than his praise, Bishop also warned of Shaheen’s overwork. “Look, I have long said that…. Shaheen Shah Afridi, every Sunday, every day for me, because he is an all-format bowler. He is an attacking bowler; he is a weapon at 21 years of age. He has so much that he can learn. But I have one request for everyone in Pakistan: please manage him carefully over the next 10 or 12 years. He is a phenomenal superstar under construction,” he added.
The best part of Shaheen’s rise in 2019 was that it came at a time when Pakistan needed a frontline fast bowler — just ahead of the unceremonious retirement of Mohammad Amir from Test cricket and Wahab Riaz deciding to stay from the longer format for some time. That was a big jolt for Pakistan. Misbah remained undeterred and decided to throw the gauntlet to a young trio of Shaheen, Naseem Shah, and Mohammad Musa on a tough tour of Australia. At that time, Shaheen had just 12 wickets in three Tests.
Slowly and gradually, Shaheen attained the status of spearhead. People have forgotten Amir and Wahab, and the team has also moved on.
Dissecting his traits, height is paramount. Shaheen uses his height – six feet, six inches, to a great effect; it’s been a great advantage for him. That sets him apart from Amir, who was well short in terms of comparison with Shaheen. That height makes him an imposing figure while he runs swiftly toward the batsman. That sight of him is intimidating. The synchrony in his action, run-up, and landing is also a great plus. That height and a relatively high release point help him extract additional bounce and surprise batsmen.
Shaheen is lethal when he bowls within the stumps, and his consistent good length deliveries make it hard to score off. He has a very good yorker. That yorker was on display when Shaheen took four first-over wickets in the T20 Blast match for Nottinghamshire against the Birmingham Bears earlier this month. This was the first time that a bowler took four wickets in his first over, indeed a great achievement.
Shaheen is still no Wasim:
Although comparisons are hazardous, inevitably, Shaheen is likened to Wasim Akram and Australian Mitchell Starc. Shaheen, like the other two, bowls at quick speeds, even with shorter run-ups. All of them are quick through the air and deceptive off the pitch. That zeal for taking wickets, shouldering the attack, and winning matches are traits of all three.
Shaheen has carved a niche for himself, as a spearhead, as a wicket-taking bowler who can single-handedly win matches for him. Along with Naseem Shah, Haris Rauf, Ihsanullah, Hasan Ali, and Zaman Khan, Shaheen formed a lethal pace attack.
Shaheen was drafted late in the 2019 World Cup, but when he got his chance, Shaheen made his presence felt. Shaheen started with an expensive 2-70 against Australia. He gradually ascended with 1-54 against South Africa, a match-winning 3-28 against New Zealand, 4-47 vs Afghanistan, and a destructive 6-35 against Bangladesh. Shaheen finished with 16 scalps in five matches to Mohammad Amir’s 17 in eight.
The 2023 World Cup gives Shaheen a good chance of coming further closer to Wasim’s stature. Wasim was phenomenal in Pakistan’s 1992 World Cup triumph, with 18 wickets and a Player of the Tournament award.
If Shaheen remains fully fit and at his predatory best, he too can help Pakistan win the World Cup. He sure can.
