Pakistan’s white-ball head coach Gary Kirsten has expressed his concerns over the workload of star pacer Shaheen Afridi, who is currently playing in the Champions Trophy, a pentangular 50-over tournament organished by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB). Shaheen is leading the Lions, one of the five teams in the tournament. While commentating on a match between the Lions and the Panthers, Kirsten highlighted the immense pressure fast bowlers endure when playing across all formats. Kirsten emphasised the need to rotate bowlers in order to keep the top players fit for the big tournaments.
Kirsten also shared an “alarming stat” about Shaheen, where he claimed that the latter has bowled “three times more” than any other bowler in the world.
“Fast bowlers are always under immense pressure to deliver and win games. When we look at our key resources, Shaheen Afridi and Naseem Shah have carried the bulk of the workload for Pakistan across all formats. Shaheen has bowled three times more overs than any other fast bowler in the world over the last 18 months. That’s alarming-you’re bound to wear him down eventually,” Kirsten was heard as saying on air.
Meanwhile, Shaheen was rested for the second Test of a two-match series against Bangladesh, which Pakistan lost earlier this month as the visitor’s claimed a historic Test series win.
Shaheen will be in action for Pakistan next month, with England set to tour the country for three Tests.
Pakistan’s white and red ball head coaches Gary Kirsten and Jason Gillespie have advised the country’s cricket board against changing the captains in haste after recent shoddy performances across formats.
Babar Azam was sacked from white ball captaincy after 2023 ODI World Cup round robin exit in India and his replacement Shaheen Shah Afridi was removed after one bad series. Similarly in Tests, after Babar resigned, Shan Masood was named captain but after 0-2 Test series defeat to Bangladesh, there are calls for his immediate ouster.
A PCB source however told PTI that recent media speculations about Masood and Babar’s sacking is nothing more than kite flying.
“There has been no discussion on changing the captains as the PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi has left it up to the two coaches and selectors to decide on the captaincy,” he said.
“And Kirsten and Gillespie are very clear that Shan and Babar both need to be given a proper run before judging their leadership abilities,” the source added.
(With PTI Inputs)
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