The 2022 Asia Cup will be severely short of firepower in the fast-bowling department as Pakistan’s ace pacer Shaheen Afridi has been ruled out of the tournament. Defending champions India will be without bowling spearhead Jasprit Bumrah and slog overs specialist Harshal Patel.
Following the news of Shaheen being absent from the tournament, ex-Pakistan captain Waqar Younis stated that Shaheen’s absence is a big relief for the Indian top-order. The young left-arm pacer has been ruled out of action for 4-6 weeks and is expected to be fit for the T20 World Cup.
“Shaheen’s injury Big relief for the Indian top order batsmen. Sad we won’t be seeing him in #AsiaCup2022. Get fit soon Champ,” wrote Waqar on Twitter. Pakistan and India are set to face each other in the opening game of the continental showpiece event on August 28 at the Dubai International Stadium.
Ex-Indian cricketer Irfan Pathan took notice of Waqar’s tweet and took a sly dig at him by reminding that India will be missing two premier bowlers in Jasprit Bumrah and Harshal Patel. “It’s a relief of other teams that Bumrah and Harshal aren’t playing this Asia cup!,” wrote Irfan on the micro-blogging site.
Both Bumrah and Harshal are currently at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) undergoing rehabilitation for their respective injuries. Bumrah is struggling with a back issue while Harshal is missing from action due to a rib injury which also forced him to miss the series against West Indies.
Shaheen was the wrecker in chief when the two sides met in last year’s T20 World Cup in Dubai International Cricket Stadium. He won the Man of the Match (MOTM) after dismissing Rohit Sharma for a golden duck and KL Rahul for a single-digit score. Later, he also got the wicket of Virat Kohli, who had scored a half-century.
