Asia Cup: No Surprises As Shaheen Afridi Picks 'Backbone' Of Indian Team

03.09.2023 - 12:43 sports.ndtv.com

Pakistan's star left-arm pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi called the unwavering Virat Kohli the backbone of the Indian team and emphasized the importance of his wicket.

In the latest chapter of their rivalry, the traditional rivals had to split points as the match was called off after heavy showers washed out the play entirely in the second innings.

Virat announced himself on the pitch with a classic cover drive to kick off his innings. However, Shaheen got the better of him with an off-swinging delivery to dismiss him for a score of 4.

After the game, while speaking to the PCB Digital and talked about the importance of Kohli's wicket. "His wicket was very important for the team.

cricket India Cricket Team Pakistan Cricket Team Asia Cup 2023 cup as Virat Kohli Shaheen Afridi Shaheen Shah Afridi India Pakistan Nepal

The Pakistan cricket team had a disappointing run in the Asia Cup 2023 as they were eliminated after losing to India and Sri Lanka in the Super 4 stage of the competition. Some star players were not able to perform well for the national side and according to a report on Geo.tv, star fast bowler Shaheen Afridi is all set to replace Shadab Khan as the team's vice-captain for Cricket World Cup 2023. The report further claimed that Pakistan's World Cup squad can look like this - Babar Azam (c), Imam-ul-Haq, Fakhar Zaman, Abdulla Shafiq, Salman Ali Agha, Iftikhar Ahmed, Saud Shakeel, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Mohammad Nawaz, Shadab Khan, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Haris Rauf, Hassan Ali, Zaman Khan.

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The Babar Azam-led Pakistan cricket team, despite a good start to the Asia Cup 2023, could not keep up the momentum and were knocked out of the Super 4 stage. The Pakistan team were pegged back by injuries of Haris Rauf and Naseem Shah too. Though they fought till the end, Pakistan could not go over the line as victors in a well-contested match against Sri Lanka, and were shown the door. The loss to Sri Lanka would rankle the team for a long time as it was one of the biggest tournament ahead of the Cricket World Cup in India.

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India vs Pakistan, Asia Cup 2023: Shubman Gill Taking Shaheen Afridi To Cleaners Sparks Meme Fest

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India vs Pakistan: Watch - New Dad Jasprit Bumrah Gets Surprise Gift From Shaheen Afridi. Gesture Is Viral

The on-field rivalry between India and Pakistan is legendary in world cricket but off the field, there have been many instances between players from both the teams that has won the hearts of fans all around the world. One such instance took place after the Asia Cup 2023 Super 4 game was halted due to rain and Shaheen Afridi went up to Jasprit Bumrah with a very special gift. Bumrah and wife Sanjana Ganesan were blessed with a baby boy earlier this week and Shaheen had a gift for him. The two fast bowlers embraced each other and Shaheen congratulated him and wished that he and his family remains happy.