Move over Shahid Afridi!
Pakistan has a new Afridi on the block who is already creating waves at the tender age of 17. The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa-born pacer is being touted as the next Wasim Akram and in some corners, the next Mitchell Starc. He is too young but he seems to be ticking all the right boxes.
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From Imran Khan and Wasim Akram to Shoaib Akhtar, Pakistan has given out one fast bowler after the other. The current pacer Mohammed Aamir is the latest to emerge from Pakistan’s conveyor belt of fast bowlers.
Here we list out the lesser-known facts about Pakistan’s newest bowling sensation:
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Cricket in his blood:
Not Shahid, but Shaheen has cricket in his blood. His elder brother Riaz played a solitary Test for Pakistan in November 2004 and was an integral was part of a successful Under-19 World Cup winning team in 2004.
Dream Debut:
Shaheen shot to fame after he scalped an 8-fer in his First Class debut. He featured in the history books with surreal figures of 8 for 39 in the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy — the best ever by a Pakistani on first-class debut.
Cricket before guns:
He was raised in a small town called Landi Kotal which fell in the shadow of insurgency in the aftermath of the World Trade Centre attacks. It was a torrid time for him and his family. While his family remained there, Shaheen moved to Peshawar, using it as his base to play cricket as he felt that was a safer place.
The BPL deal:
According to Cricinfo, Shaheen’s agent his bowling video to Dhaka Dynamites after which, Mushtaq Ahmed lavished praise on the youngster. The franchise showed an instant inclination to select the fast bowler. Soon, Mushtaq Ahmed and Kumar Sangakkara exchanged emails and a deal was struck. He got a 2-year deal of Rs 1 crore starting from 2017.
The best bowling figures by a Pakistan bowler at U19 level – watch Shaheen Afridi strike six times against Ireland, conceding just 15 runs! _ #PAKvIRE #U19CWC pic.twitter.com/ze1fQ46QQu
— Cricket World Cup (@cricketworldcup) January 16, 2018
8.5 overs, 3 maidens, 15 runs, SIX wickets!
Take a bow Shaheen Afridi, the best ever bowling figures for Pakistan at the #U19CWC – the fifth best of any side! _ pic.twitter.com/xzSkfQdV71
— Cricket World Cup (@cricketworldcup) January 15, 2018
The Latest Record:
He is currently trending because the U-19 Cricket World Cup is on and this youngster has made headlines after he bagged the best figures by a Pakistani in the U-19 World Cup. He got figures of 6 for 15 against Ireland, which is the record.
