There was finally something to celebrate for Lahore Qalandars in the Pakistan Super League. After six consecutive defeats, they won their first game of the competition by a stunning six wickets over league leaders Multan Sultans.
But there was one man who stole the show for Lahore and his name is Shaheen Afridi. After going wicketless for three matches, Afridi finally got his first scalps of the tournament – a five-wicket haul.
The 17-year-old left-armer was sensational for the bottom side with figures of 5-4 and that feat is even more remarkable considering he didn’t even bowl his full quota of four overs.
Here we analyse his performance of the six-wicket victory on Friday evening.
STATISTICS
OVERS BOWLED: 3.4
WICKETS: 5
ECONOMY: 1.09
MAIDENS: 1
RUNS CONCEDED: 4
FOURS: 0
SIXES: 0
30-SECOND REPORT AND KEY MOMENTS
The 17-year-old pacer had already been earmarked as one for the future by Lahore Qalandars’ coach Aaqib Javed before a ball was even bowled and on Friday evening, he left everyone in awe at Dubai International Stadium after his sensational bowling.
He was made to wait until the 13th over (later revealing it was part of a plan) but made a big impression every time he was on to bowl. His swing and reverse ball caused problems for Multan and Shoaib Malik, Ross Whiteley and Saif Badar all got a first-hand view of what damage he can do after taking three wickets in four balls.
It got better for Lahore’s new star, wrapping up the innings with the dismissals of Mohammad Irfan and Junaid Khan in consecutive deliveries.
OUT! 19.3 Shaheen Afridi to Junaid Khan
— PakistanSuperLeague (@thePSLt20) March 9, 2018
Watch ball by ball highlights at https://t.co/zr4lRaWRAW#MSvLQ #HBLPSL #PSL2018 @_cricingif pic.twitter.com/kCdb7CDWJX
Despite being frustrated with his efforts in his previous three games, Afridi was consistent with the ball, containing the batsmen who were unable to get a boundary off any of his deliveries. His in-swinging yorkers also proved to be a challenge for Multan.
VERDICT: 9/10
As far as PSL individual performances go, this display is definitely up there among the best. It was only a matter of time before he delivered and he did so in remarkable style. It was even more special considering it saw Lahore end their losing six-match run for their first win of this year’s PSL.
WHAT AFRIDI THOUGHT OF HIS PERFORMANCE:
“I said on the bus while coming to the stadium that I would take five wickets and it looks like Allah heard my prayers. It’s a very good feeling to get the five wickets and more importantly the win. Before (the tournament), I had never played T20 cricket, not even at club level, so to be playing on a big stage is a special moment for me.”
