Following Pakistan’s defeat against England in the second T20I at the Edgbaston Stadium in Birmingham, former skipper Shahid Afridi reached out to Green Shirts’ leg spinner Shadab Khan after he recorded his worst bowling figures in the T20Is.
During the match on Saturday, Babar Azam-led side was bowled out for 160 while chasing a target of 184 with the host England securing their eighth win in the last 11 T20Is against the Men in Green.
During the match, Shadab went on to concede 55 runs in his four overs without taking any wicket — his worst bowling figure in T20Is.
The right-arm leg spinner had bowled the same figures during a Pakistan Super League (PSL) match against Peshawar Zalmi in 2021.
Afridi, while talking to a local news channel, revealed he had a chat with Shadab after Saturday’s match where he tried to give him confidence and told him what he was doing wrong with the ball.
“I need Shadab to deliver with the ball. Whenever he has performed with the ball, Pakistan have won. I have watched all of his matches in the past. We had a detailed chat yesterday, I asked him who is guiding him or if there is something he is not doing, how are you making such mistakes is there no one to tell you?” said Afridi.
“I called yesterday because I know he is going through a difficult time so I always try to help and motivate players who are having a hard time. Similarly, I talked with Shadab about what he is doing wrong and I hope that if he does [what he discussed] in training sessions, you will see the difference.”
He was then asked if there’s some mental block with Shadab to which he said: “Is there any leg-spin coach with the team? Saeed Ajmal was there but he was an off-spinner. Ajmal should be asked if he guided Shadab and why is he not doing what he was told.
“I know there must be tremendous pressure on Shadab but big players know how to pull themselves out of such situations. I shared with him one to two problems I found with his bowling and I’m hoping that he will work on those things,” the former skipper concluded.
Pak vs Eng series schedule:
28 May – 3rd T20I, Cardiff
30 May – 4th T20I, The Oval