India will face Pakistan in their opening of Asia Cup 2022 at the Dubai International Stadium, on 28th August. However, India suffered a tragic ten wickets loss against Pakistan in the 2021 T-20 World Cup. Left-arm seamer Shaheen Shah Afridi was the star then. He shattered India’s top 3, thus trembling India’s batting pillars. The then Indian Skipper Virat Kohli was the one who stood in front of Shaheen. He scored vital 50 runs until he got dismissed by the latter.
Nonetheless, India must be ready to face another fiery contest against Shaheen. Moreover, it’s not because of what happened previously, but India’s long-time shakiness against the left arms. Recently India’s weakness was totally exposed in front of England’s Reece Topley and West Indian Obed McCoy.
No need to be afraid of Shaheen Afridi: Danish Kaneria
Former Pakistan spinner Danish Kaneria, while speaking on this possible threat, said India are actually in safe hands. Virat Kohli and the present-day captain Rohit Sharma are world-class batters. They can easily tackle, Shaheen. All they need to be aware of is Shaheen’s length. Moreover, Shaheen can swing the ball, which can be an issue for the Indian batter.
However, Karim mentioned Suryakumar Yadav’s name too. The addition of Yadav to the team will ease the threat. Surya, according to Kareem is a pro at tackling things.
While speaking about that, Danish Karim on his Youtube channel said,
“No need to be afraid of Shaheen Afridi because Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli are world-class batters. They just need to be aware that Shaheen will look to bowl fuller and get the ball to swing into them. So they should be prepared to not commit with their leg but negotiate it with the bat by playing closer to the body.”
Kaneria further added,
“Suryakumar Yadav’s flick shots over square leg will also be important against Shaheen’s bowling.”
There has indeed been no doubt about India’s weakness in facing left-arm pacers. The top order finds it a real hard job to deal with them. Be it Afridi, be it Topley, be it McCoy, the top trio have struggled. Even the 2019 World Cup witnessed the Indian batters’ sheer helplessness in front of Trent Boult.
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