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During the World Cup, Shaheen Shah Afridi has most
likely not been one of the top bowlers. Despite this, he has the joint-highest
wicket-taking average, taking a wicket every 23 balls at a respectable 5.22 an
over.
It is a more noteworthy accomplishment than it
appears. First of all, a bowler is simpler to isolate in a one-man act than a
batter. A bowler only gets ten overs to bowl, and if the batters know the other
players are not playing well, they can sit them out. However, a hitter can
still bat through an innings even if the others have not shown up. For example,
Rashid Khan is familiar with that emotion and must always strive for
achievement.
It’s simple to play Afridi out and then take advantage
of the others since Naseem Shah is hurt and Pakistan’s spinners are possibly
the worst in the World Cup. Afridi is accustomed to bowling the lengths
required to counter that, but at the locations where Pakistan has played, there
hasn’t been much swing.
There’s a reason why Afridi, who defeated Mitchell
Starc, his bowling twin, by one match on Tuesday, became the fastest fast
bowler to 100 ODI wickets. He has the highest strike rate in that 100-wicket
club, aside from Sandeep Lamichhane, for a reason. His strategy is simple:
swing it, bowl straight and quickly, and hit the stumps or pads if they get in
the way.
Its been more labour than previous World Cups. His
normal approach did not yield very good results, particularly against India
where a modest total to defend compounded the challenges of a weak attack. He
was left with no choice but to assault. His final tournament statistics were an
economy of 6.31 and an average of 34.75 at the conclusion of the India match.
Afridi reduced the amount of complete balls in the
powerplay to a third in the subsequent game. He shifted more towards the
shorter portion of the hard-length band and less towards its broader section.
From six to seven metres to seven to nine metres is a slight variation.
This is what bowlers Josh Hazlewood and Jasprit
Bumrah, who are probably the two to aspire to be like, have been doing.
However, Naseem served as Afridi’s Hazlewood while Afridi was now required to
handle both roles. The accuracy of elite international bowlers is astounding;
they are thoughtful enough to establish two zones within a three-meter zone and
alternate between them based on the circumstances.
Afridi has likely overcome the first obstacle in his
limited-overs international career by learning how to take wickets in the
middle overs and with hard lengths. Afridi may certainly attack more if Naseem
returns, but his World Cup triumph over adversity will only make him a stronger
bowler. Even though the team’s performance is still poor, he might feel a
little more relieved that he has managed to find a solution in a private
moment.