Srinagar: Formet Pakistan all-rounder has once again taken a jibe at pacer Haris Rauf for skipping Australia Test series and opting to play Big Bash League T20.
Rauf played four matches for the Melbourne Stars in Australia’s BBL concurrent with the ongoing Test series against Australia.
“I think Haris [Rauf] should be part of this side instead rather than [the BBL],” Shahid Afridi, speaking to media at the MCG, said.
“In these conditions, the kind of pace he has, he would have performed well and enjoyed himself on the kinds of pitches Australia prepared in Perth and here.”
About Shaheen Afridi’s decline in pace , the former Skipper said, “I’ve never got the impression that Shaheen has an injury. If you’re injured, you can’t play as a fast bowler. He knows his responsibility and how important he is to the team. The fast bowlers… we are expecting a lot from them because they’ve done well in the past. Babar, Rizwan, Shaheen etc., have performed so well we expect them to perform in every match. Relentless consistency is challenging in cricket”.
“I have always said that unless our bench is strong, we won’t be able to make the best decisions. The A team should be as strong as the main team, so if Shaheen or Babar or Rizwan aren’t strong, we shouldn’t have the excuses of players being unavailable, like we do with Naseem now. When our bench is strong, we will no longer have excuses.”