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Brendon McCullum's take on Shaheen Afridi missing out for first Test (Image Source: Twitter)
After crushing Pakistan in the finals of the 20-20 World Cup 2022, England will now face the Babar Azam-led team in a three-match Test series set to get underway on December 1, Thursday at the Pindi Cricket Stadium. However, Pakistan’s star pacer, Shaheen Afridi, is all set to miss the first Test on the back of the injury that he sustained during the summit clash, which forced him to walk off after faring out well in the first 2 overs of his spell.
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As things stand, ahead of the first Test, Brendon McCullum, the head coach of the English Test team, was asked about Afridi’s injury and the former New Zealand cricketer said that it was a big loss for Pakistan, given that he has made a significant impact in the team so far.
Claiming that he played with the talented pacer in the Pakistan Super League (PSL), McCullum said that he was always in awe of the pacer during that time and added that he loved playing alongside him in the classic tournament.
He is a wonderful bowler: Brendon McCullum
Further, McCullum lauded Afridi for evolving as an international player and added that he has grown in stature to become a great leader for the team as well. Notably, the young pacer dominated the finals against England and almost took the game away from the mighty Three Lions with his impactful spell.
“Yeah, it's obviously a big loss. Shaheen Shah Afridi, I know pretty well, I have played many years in the PSL with Shaheen as well. He is a wonderful bowler and he has turned into a fine leader as well amongst Pakistani cricket. So he's a big loss, no doubt,” McCullum was quoted as saying.
“But one thing when you play against Pakistan and you look at their team sheet and you see talent. And you see, some of it may be not necessarily developed talent as such but it's talent and you need to respect that and you need to find a way to be able to be well researched, well planned about what's gonna come at you. But also find out a way that there is an opportunity there to put that talent under pressure and see how it responds,” said the head coach further.
“So look, it's a very good Pakistan squad, it's well-rounded, it's got some experience and some youth with both batting and bowling and they'll be a tough challenge. We know we'll have to play well if we're going to be successful. I guess that's all in front of us,” he added.