Shaheen Shah Afridi is no Wasim Akram, no need to give him that kind of hype: Ravi Shastri

Widely revered as one of the best bowling attacks in world cricket, Pakistan’s current bowlers are undoubtedly a force to be reckoned with. With star players like Shaheen Afridi and Haris Rauf opening the bowling attack and experienced players like Hasan Ali lending a helping hand, Pakistan’s repertoire with the ball has been discussed quite a lot in recent years. 

However, the same bowling attack fell prey to the dominant Indian batters in game 12 of the ODI World Cup 2023. The sub-par performance from Pakistan’s bowling attack saw them tumble to a hefty loss against arch-rivals India.

Speaking of the same attack, former Indian cricketer Ravi Shastri came forward and talked of ace pacer Shaheen Afridi. Shastri opined that there is no need to give Shaheen that kind of hype and that he is no Wasim Akram. Furthermore, he also called out the entire bowling lineup of Men in Green.

“People tell me that Pakistan have a resounding bowling attack. Nakli baat hai ye sab (It’s not true at all). It’s not good, and you have to accept that. You don’t have Naseem Shah at the moment, neither you got a quality spin attack,” Ravi Shastri said on air.

“Shaheen Shah Afridi koi Wasim Akram nahi hai (Shaheen Shah Afridi is no Wasim Akram). I agree that he bowls with the new ball and picks up wickets but no need to give him that kind of hype. Something which is ok, you have to call it ok. No need to give them too much importance because this attack is not the best one,” he added.

just Ravi Shastri casually toasting opposition 😂 pic.twitter.com/9lxptlI2pL

— sar (@sarxsxs) October 14, 2023

India stay unbeaten as Pakistan suffer first loss

Speaking of the game, Pakistan got off to a good start in Ahmedabad as the side’s top order did well. However, the collapse of the middle order saw them getting bundled out for a meagre total of 191.

Aiming to chase down the target, Indian skipper Rohit Sharma played a marvellous innings, scoring 86 runs in 63 deliveries. Rohit’s knock helped India win the game by seven wickets and stay unbeaten at the ODI World Cup 2023.