NEW DELHI: The Pakistan players made their way into Bengaluru's Chinnaswamy Stadium on a mild Wednesday afternoon, appearing relaxed and engaging in lively conversations with each other. However, one player stood out.
Shaheen Afridi, in stark contrast, seemed completely focused and headed straight to the center of the field, accompanied by bowling coach Morne Morkel.
This sight likely brought relief to the Pakistan camp, as the tall left-arm pacer displayed no signs of the fever that had affected the team upon their arrival in the city. Afridi immediately immersed himself in the day's net session.
Afridi examined the pitch, which had a hint of green, before commencing the day's activities with stretching and various warm-up drills. Subsequently, the 23-year-old shifted to the center nets and began bowling with short run-ups, all while Morkel closely observed.
As the session advanced, Afridi increased his pace and posed a challenge to the right-handed batters with his sharp, incoming deliveries. Later on, he even tried his hand at batting, facing his teammates and receiving a few throwdowns from a specialist.
However, this entire exercise carries a deeper significance for Pakistan. In the absence of the injured Naseem Shah, Afridi is expected to lead the team's bowling attack in the World Cup.
Regrettably, he has not quite lived up to expectations so far. Afridi has taken four wickets in three matches, and his economy rate of 6.31 is the second-worst among Pakistani bowlers, trailing only leg-spinner Shadab Khan with an economy rate of 6.55. His tournament average stands at 34.75, and both of these statistics are notably higher than his career averages of 5.51 and 23.87.
Not too long ago, Afridi was a formidable presence with the new ball, causing significant damage during the Powerplay segment and disrupting opposition teams' early momentum. However, in this tournament, Afridi has appeared far from that intimidating form. In addition to his reduced effectiveness, the Pakistan management must be concerned about the noticeable drop in Afridi's pace.
Afridi, capable of reaching speeds close to 150 kilometers per hour, has seldom crossed the 140-kilometer mark in this World Cup, as batsmen have coped with him comfortably on the slower Indian pitches.
The match against India in Ahmedabad was a prime example of this. Rohit Sharma confidently played Afridi's deliveries for boundaries, and Virat Kohli elegantly executed cover drives while leaning forward – not the sight a fast bowler would want to see.
Afridi found himself without real answers as his first four overs went for 32 runs, and taking Shubman Gill's wicket would have provided little solace.
"His problem seems more in the mind than with his skills. The ability will not go away after one match or two. Perhaps, he is over-trying things, maybe the absence of Naseem (Shah) has hit him a bit, with whom he has good new ball partnership.
"He should just relax and not think about his role and external things like that. Focus just on bowling, and I think he will be alright," tells Waqas Ahmed, bowling coach of Afridi's PSL team Lahore Qalandars.
Pakistan will hope that Afridi will slip into his best on Friday against Australia, and that will be imperative for them after a pasting by India.
Mir for Shadab?
Apart from Afridi, Pakistan will also be concerned with the form of Shadab, who plucked just two wickets from three matches while leaking runs aplenty.
The underwhelming Shahdab is a big reason for Pakistan's failure to exercise control over rivals in the middle-overs.
In that context, they might just think of giving a chance to Usama Mir, the 27-year-old leg-spinner from Sialkot.
Mir, who recovered completely from the fever, has played eight ODIs and has taken 11 wickets so far.
Meanwhile, all the Pakistan players save reserve wicketkeeper Mohamad Haris attended the day's practice session.
(With PTI inputs)
