In the Pakistan cricket team, there was only one Afridi who created his aura and made everyone afraid of him because of his outstanding cricket. But later, another Afridi came on board with the ability to prove himself, a young star who was ready to rise like a falcon and conquer every wicket he could.
That’s none other than Shaheen Shah Afridi, the young rising pacer in the Pakistan cricket team squad who delivered some marvelous performances and led his side to the winning victories. No one thought that Shaheen Shah Afridi would grab everyone’s attention at such a great pace and make every batsman scared of facing him.
Just like every other player, Shaheen Shah Afridi also has an inspiring story that made him pursue his career as the fast bowler for the Pakistan cricket team.
Early Life
Shaheen Shah Afridi belonged to the Zakha khel Afridi tribe of the Pashtuns. He has seven brothers, and among them, he’s the youngest one. On the 6th of April 2000, a young bowler was born who grew up with the aim or say goal to be the best bowler in the world and indeed he’s on the right path in his career. Shaheen started his cricket career at the Tatara Ground in Landi Kotal, which is named after the nearby Tatara Hills. One of Shaheen’s brothers Riaz Afridi who also played solitary test matches for Pakistan in 2004 introduced Shaheen to hard-ball cricket at the FATA Under-16 trials in 2015. He was shifted from a tape ball to a hard ball and then his success journey began. His determination toward his career led him to play the Under-16 tour of Australia in November 2015, where he played his part with four wickets in the 2–1 victories in the One-Day and Twenty20 series. Right after that, Shaheen’s domestic and T20 career began in full swing, just like his bowling to hit the bull’s eyes. Next year, in 2016, Shaheen was included in the Pakistan Under-19 cricket team selected for the 2016 Under-19 Asia Cup held in Sri Lankan that tournament, Shaheen shined with his bowling and grabbed other leagues’ attention. He eventually received a two-year contract from the Dhaka Dynamites, a major Bangladesh Premier League franchise, in 2017.
Rise of the Falcon
After playing in domestic and international T20 leagues, Shaheen was selected in Pakistan’s squad for the 2018 Under-19 Cricket World Cup. He became the highest wicket-taker for the Pakistan cricket team, and his performance was also acknowledged by the ICC by naming him the “rising star” of the squad. After that, Afridi made his T20 debut with Lahore Qalandars back in the 2018 Pakistan Super League, and there his presence was witnessed by other players from all across the globe. In the same edition, Shaheen took five wickets against Multan Sultan and conceded only four runs. Just like domestically, in 2019, it was announced that Afridi would play for Hampshire County Cricket Club in the 2020 t20 Blast in England. Afridi kept his consistency with the Hampshire County Cricket Club, and in the final stages of the group match, Shaheen outnumbered the batsmen. Afridi took a hat-trick and four wickets in four balls, leaving an incredible record, He finished with match figures of 6/19 from his four overs, recording the best-ever bowling figures at the Rose Bowl in T20 cricket. After playing in various leagues Shaheen was named to the T20 squad of the Pakistan cricket team against the West Indies back in 2018, and there his actual international journey started. On April 3, 2018, he made his T20I debut for Pakistan against the West Indies, and a few months later, he was named in the ODI squad for the 2018 Asia Cup. In the same year, he also joined the Test squad for their series against New Zealand.
Personal Life
Talking about his personal life, as per the report that came out in 2021, Shaheen Shah Afridi will be engaged to Shahid Afridi’s elder daughter Aqsa.
Making His Mark in the World of Cricket
Since 2019, Shaheen Shah Afridi transformed himself in every manner, especially in bowling, and made his fear batters. He was also included in the 2019 World Cup squad, where he became the youngest bowler to take a five-wicket haul against Bangladesh in the World Cup campaign.
These were also the best bowling figures by a bowler for Pakistan in a World Cup match. For the second time, in the World Cup ICC name him as the rising star of the squad. In the 2021 T20 World Cup, Shaheen, Shah Afridi, grabbed everyone’s attention when he delivered an unforgettable spell against India.
He was the only Pakistani bowler who sent Virat Kohli to the pavilion and tarnished the Indian batting line-up. Even the ICC announced his spell as the “spell of the tournament.” In 2022, the ICC named Shaheen Shah Afridi “the Cricketer of the Year” as he took 78 wickets in 36 international matches in 2021.
Shaheen then got seriously injured and went to rehab, which made Pakistan cricket discover Naseem Shah, who also rose in a different way.
Awards & Achievements
• PCB’s impactful performance of the year: 2021
• Shaheen was named in the ICC Men’s Test Team of the Year for the year 2021
.• Named in ICC Men’s T20I Team of the Year 2021
.• He won the Sir Garfield Sobers [69] for the ICC Men’s Cricket of the Year of 2021.
• Became K-P police goodwill ambassador in 2022.
Shaheen Shah Afridi has been dominant in the cricket world with his bowl and demolished every single batsman out there. There’s not a single batsman who walked away without praising his pace and bowling skills.
