In order to manage his workload, Pakistan’s seasoned fast bowler Shaheen Shah Afridi is allegedly unhappy that he won’t be selected for the next Test matches in the West Indies and England this year.
During their Caribbean tour, Pakistan will play Test matches in Tarouba on July 25 and Port of Spain on August 2. On August 19, they will begin a three-Test series in England. The 26-year-old Shaheen is currently in charge of the national ODI team.
According to sources, “The selectors and management believe that it is better if Shaheen’s workload is managed and he focusses more on white-ball cricket from here on.”
However, the fast bowler is allegedly dissatisfied with this choice and has expressed a strong desire to participate in more Test matches given his youth.
Since making his debut in 2018, Shaheen has participated in 34 Test matches and taken 126 wickets, but he has made much more appearances in white-ball cricket—77 ODIs and 103 T20 Internationals.
His Test appearances have been progressively curtailed by the selectors; since December 2023, he has only played in seven of Pakistan’s sixteen five-day matches. Mike Hesson, the head coach of white-ball cricket, is said to have backed the choice to control Shaheen’s workload.
In response to Pakistan’s recent struggle with a lack of true fast bowlers who can consistently clock 140 kph, which has affected their Test performance and prompted the preparation of slow turning tracks at home, this strategy seeks to give opportunities to other promising domestic pace bowlers like Muhammad Ali, Muhammad Abbas, and Khurrum Shehzad.
