How you would rate Shaheen Shah Afridi?

[iniqbal223]

1) fearsome and world class bowler
2) Go to bowler for wicket
3) The best we have ; but tad average
4) Below average; should have achieved more given he has been the spearhead in last 4 years or so

 

[marlonbrowndo]

The most talented prospect that Pakistan have produced in the last 10 years. Our best Cricketer at just 21 years of age (officially)

 

[Junaids]

An absolutely superb bowler, who has the natural gifts of Mitchell Starc but already bowls a far smarter line and length in Tests than Starc ever has.

The best thing to happen to Pakistan cricket since Wasim Akram took 7-50 in a side-match against New Zealand in 1984 when he was just 17 years old.

 

[Slim]

The best young fast bowler in the world.

 

[JattMaula]

An absolutely superb bowler, who has the natural gifts of Mitchell Starc but already bowls a far smarter line and length in Tests than Starc ever has.

The best thing to happen to Pakistan cricket since Wasim Akram took 7-50 in a side-match against New Zealand in 1984 when he was just 17 years old.

Yup.

Best Pakistani bowler to debut in last 30 years.

 

[Usman Chadda]

Capable of greatness, but loses his head too often from time to time.

 

[angrypathan]

Work in progress. World class talent though

 

[YousafTheBeast]

He’s good, just don’t back him to defend 20 runs off the last 6 against the top teams.

 

[topspin]

He’s good, just don’t back him to defend 20 runs off the last 6 against the top teams.

In fairness the only Pakistani bowler who is more capable than him in this scenario is Amir.

A lot of posters here love Sohail Tanvir but he isn't the answer to Pakistan's bowling issues.

 

[YousafTheBeast]

In fairness the only Pakistani bowler who is more capable than him in this scenario is Amir.

A lot of posters here love Sohail Tanvir but he isn't the answer to Pakistan's bowling issues.

Our lack of quality death bowlers will hurt our chances of ever winning the trophy, which is why we should look to bowl first vs India because i don’t back the current group of bowlers to even defend 200.

 

[Mamoon]

If he doesn’t get injured, he will go down as Pakistan’s fourth greatest fast bowler after Wasim, Imran and Waqar.

In fact, personally speaking, I would put him above Waqar. If he bowls with the type of balls that Waqar bowled with and against tail-enders who didn’t know how to hold a bat, he would have had a similar impact to Waqar.

Shaheen too would wreak havoc with those heavily doctored balls that our bowlers bowled with in the 80s and 90s.

Had Waqar bowled today, he would not fare much better than Shaheen. In fact, he would definitely be more expensive.

So in my view, he is already the third best fast bowler produced by Pakistan (yes, ahead of Akhtar as well) and the best Pakistani cricketer today because potential wise he is good as any fast bowler around today.

Babar and Rizwan are excellent but there are several better batsmen even on raw potential, but Shaheen can be as good as anyone.

He is one of those who could wonders under a proper bowling coach. For example, someone like Bharat Arun could elevate him to Bumrah’s level.

 

[Rana]

If he doesn’t get injured, he will go down as Pakistan’s fourth greatest fast bowler after Wasim, Imran and Waqar.

In fact, personally speaking, I would put him above Waqar. If he bowls with the type of balls that Waqar bowled with and against tail-enders who didn’t know how to hold a bat, he would have had a similar impact to Waqar.

Shaheen too would wreak havoc with those heavily doctored balls that our bowlers bowled with in the 80s and 90s.

Had Waqar bowled today, he would not fare much better than Shaheen. In fact, he would definitely be more expensive.

So in my view, he is already the third best fast bowler produced by Pakistan (yes, ahead of Akhtar as well) and the best Pakistani cricketer today because potential wise he is good as any fast bowler around today.

Babar and Rizwan are excellent but there are several better batsmen even on raw potential, but Shaheen can be as good as anyone.

He is one of those who could wonders under a proper bowling coach. For example, someone like Bharat Arun could elevate him to Bumrah’s level.

The rules have always been the same for everyone. Pakistan historically are the worst at covering their tracks when it comes to bending the rules. All bowlers, teams were playing by the same rule book one way or another, and the Pakistani bowlers stood out as excellent amongst their contemporaries.

Stop distorting facts and history to make it seem Pakistan were following one rule books whilst everyone was following another.

 

[Rana]

Had Waqar bowled today, he would not fare much better than Shaheen. In fact, he would definitely be more expensive.

So in my view, he is already the third best fast bowler produced by Pakistan (yes, ahead of Akhtar as well) and the best Pakistani cricketer today because potential wise he is good as any fast bowler around today.

Alright, can you please explain this comment. How is he already a better bowler than Akhtar?

 

[IMMY69]

The rules have always been the same for everyone. Pakistan historically are the worst at covering their tracks when it comes to bending the rules. All bowlers, teams were playing by the same rule book one way or another, and the Pakistani bowlers stood out as excellent amongst their contemporaries.

Stop distorting facts and history to make it seem Pakistan were following one rule books whilst everyone was following another.

Plus other other bowlers using the game ball couldn't get it do what Waqar did (other then Wasim).

The same goes for the England Side, when Gough was reversing it, the others weren't able to do jack

 

[NishanKonar]

Yup.

Best Pakistani bowler to debut in last 30 years.

That's Mohammad Asif

 

[Rana]

That's Mohammad Asif

Pre ban Amir was a demon too. I personally don’t think Shaheen Afridi is better than the Amir we saw before his ban when it comes to raw talent.

 

[Mesozoic]

A world class talent.

Has all the ingredients to replace Cummins/Bumrah as the best bowler in the world in 2-3 years time.

 

[NishanKonar]

Pre ban Amir was a demon too. I personally don’t think Shaheen Afridi is better than the Amir we saw before his ban when it comes to raw talent.

Amir was good in helpful conditions and in T20s and ODIs. Asif was better all round bowler

 

[Rana]

Amir was good in helpful conditions and in T20s and ODIs. Asif was better all round bowler

Asif had been written off as an ODI/T20i bowler by 2009. I don’t think he would have played a single game for Pakistan in the 2011 World Cup had he not been banned. Amir was the complete 3 format bowler for Pakistan. He missed out on 200-300 international wickets during his 5 year ban, what a waste!

 

[Mamoon]

The rules have always been the same for everyone. Pakistan historically are the worst at covering their tracks when it comes to bending the rules. All bowlers, teams were playing by the same rule book one way or another, and the Pakistani bowlers stood out as excellent amongst their contemporaries.

Stop distorting facts and history to make it seem Pakistan were following one rule books whilst everyone was following another.

Yeah, that is not the point at all.

Waqar is the biggest beneficiary of ball-tampering in history, but to his credit, he was a far better bowler than most of his non-Pakistani peers from 1989 to 1993 who weren’t half as lethal as he was in spite bowling with tampered balls.

However, it is worth pointing out that this form of cheating which was mastered by Sarfaraz Nawaz and then passed onto Imran was not mastered by other sides until the late 90’s, so Pakistani bowlers did enjoy unfair advantage.

Nonetheless, we are not talking about Waqar’s peers here. We are talking about Shaheen, who is undoubtedly an extraordinary talented fast bowler with everything in his locker.

It took Waqar nearly a decade to learn with the new ball while Shaheen has been swinging the new, undoctored ball since his debut.

Take a look at the yorker he bowled to Bairstow in the third T20I earlier this year. Imagine him bowling with those heavily doctored balls against lineups where anyone below 7 was actually a worse batsman than today’s number 11s.

His numbers would have been incredible and they are already excellent.

My point is that Pakistani bowlers like Shaheen will forever be handicapped compared to their predecessors because they are not enjoying the favorable conditions and rules that their predecessors did, and we should not fail to take that into account when rating them.

 

[Mamoon]

Alright, can you please explain this comment. How is he already a better bowler than Akhtar?

Akhtar is a nobody.

He took only 174 Test wickets. Yes he had his physical limitations, but in spite of those limitations, he could have taken 350+ Test wickets if he had a better attitude and took better care of his body.

Unlike Akhtar, Shaheen has his priorities in the right place. He is less than a hundred wickets away from Akhtar’s tally and has at least 12-13 years left, so let’s not disrespect by comparing him to a self-appointed great whose mouth is bigger than his legacy.

 

[ARK Rafay]

Best young naturally gifted bowler to come out from Pakistan after Amir. Although he is on track to become the greatest fast bowler after Wasim.

 

[hk031992]

Akhtar is a nobody.

He took only 174 Test wickets. Yes he had his physical limitations, but in spite of those limitations, he could have taken 350+ Test wickets if he had a better attitude and took better care of his body.

Unlike Akhtar, Shaheen has his priorities in the right place. He is less than a hundred wickets away from Akhtar’s tally and has at least 12-13 years left, so let’s not disrespect by comparing him to a self-appointed great whose mouth is bigger than his legacy.

Akhtar is second tier among quicks in his era. First tier would be guys who averaged under 24: McGrath, Wasim, Ambrose etc.

Second tier would be guys like Gillespie and Akhtar.

 

[JattMaula]

That's Mohammad Asif

I consider moral character to be a part of sportsman's overall worthyness.

 

[sweep_shot]

Best bowler from Pakistan at this moment.

Looking good to have a good future ahead.

 

[Rana]

Akhtar is a nobody.

He took only 174 Test wickets. Yes he had his physical limitations, but in spite of those limitations, he could have taken 350+ Test wickets if he had a better attitude and took better care of his body.

Unlike Akhtar, Shaheen has his priorities in the right place. He is less than a hundred wickets away from Akhtar’s tally and has at least 12-13 years left, so let’s not disrespect by comparing him to a self-appointed great whose mouth is bigger than his legacy.

If you watched Akhtar until 2007 (I watched him closely from 2003-11), he was still the premier, ace bowler of Pakistan considering how most of his playing time was managed due to injuries and indiscipline with the board. He was a proper wicket taker, and a big wicket taker.

Shaheen is very good and I pray that he doesn’t lose his way on his path of achieving 400+ Test wickets, but he is yet to demonstrate the same kind of impact Shoaib Akhtar did display as the leader of the Pakistan attack in Australia, New Zealand and the iconic post ashes 2005 tour of England. It is too early to say Shaheen is better than Shoaib considering how poor and disappointing Pakistan’s bowling performances were in Australia, England and NZ. His performances have improved now that Hassan Ali is supporting him and taking wickets, plus he wad magnificent in West Indies. He will also most likely do very well against Bangladesh as well. So yes, he is on his way. However, it only takes one serious injury or a brief period of loss in form for any cricketer to lose his way (May God forbid) . And then it could take someone in 20 years to write how Shaheen is a ‘nobody’ on an Internet forum considering how that loss of form or injury does not allow Shaheen to fulfil his potential.

At the moment, Shaheen is yet to emulate Umar Gul as an ODI/T20 bowler, and we are yet to see dominating performances in SENA by by him.

 

[shamaan]

He will go on to break many records.He will go down as the second greatest bowler.

 

[UzmanBeast]

Akhtar is a nobody.

He took only 174 Test wickets. Yes he had his physical limitations, but in spite of those limitations, he could have taken 350+ Test wickets if he had a better attitude and took better care of his body.

Unlike Akhtar, Shaheen has his priorities in the right place. He is less than a hundred wickets away from Akhtar’s tally and has at least 12-13 years left, so let’s not disrespect by comparing him to a self-appointed great whose mouth is bigger than his legacy.

Your description of Akhtar made me laugh I must say: haven't heard anything so spot-on in a while.

Would you place Shaheen ahead of Mohammad Asif (exclude his disastrous match-fixing scandal) skill-wise?

I think that Shaheen in tests has a very bright future, but I don't think he is someone who should waste his time in T20 cricket, personally speaking.

I would rather he retires from T20s earlier to prolong his test match career than the other way around. He has all the ingredients for having a test career with more than 400+ wickets should luck favor him and if he is managed well.

The addition of Vernon Philander could help him developing a proper line-length in test cricket, and perhaps Philander could get him to swing the ball both ways to make him a lethal weapon.

Shaheen the test and ODI bowler is far superior than Shaheen the T20 bowler, as far as international cricket goes.

 

[Mamoon]

If you watched Akhtar until 2007 (I watched him closely from 2003-11), he was still the premier, ace bowler of Pakistan considering how most of his playing time was managed due to injuries and indiscipline with the board. He was a proper wicket taker, and a big wicket taker.

Shaheen is very good and I pray that he doesn’t lose his way on his path of achieving 400+ Test wickets, but he is yet to demonstrate the same kind of impact Shoaib Akhtar did display as the leader of the Pakistan attack in Australia, New Zealand and the iconic post ashes 2005 tour of England. It is too early to say Shaheen is better than Shoaib considering how poor and disappointing Pakistan’s bowling performances were in Australia, England and NZ. His performances have improved now that Hassan Ali is supporting him and taking wickets, plus he wad magnificent in West Indies. He will also most likely do very well against Bangladesh as well. So yes, he is on his way. However, it only takes one serious injury or a brief period of loss in form for any cricketer to lose his way (May God forbid) . And then it could take someone in 20 years to write how Shaheen is a ‘nobody’ on an Internet forum considering how that loss of form or injury does not allow Shaheen to fulfil his potential.

At the moment, Shaheen is yet to emulate Umar Gul as an ODI/T20 bowler, and we are yet to see dominating performances in SENA by by him.

Akhtar’s genuine peak was 2001-02. He was absolutely brilliant to watch during those two years. He was virtually unplayable in both Tests and ODIs.

If Pakistan had a more robust batting lineup during those two years, Akhtar could have helped Pakistan become the second strongest team of that period across both formats ahead of South Africa and India, but Pakistan’s batting during those two years was basically carried by Yousuf.

After 2002, Shoaib was mostly unavailable and mediocre when available, living off his past name and glory.

Between 2003-04 and his retirement in 2011, the 2005 series against England is the only occasion where he looked a world class, ace bowler.

Akhtar has his own fan base and legacy because of his speed and undeniable star factor. Much like Shahid Afridi, he was and is. Superhero for his fans, but Shaheen doesn’t have to do much to leave a bigger legacy behind in terms of actual performances.

 

[reversehook]

#4... below par, andhon mein kaana raaja for us... none of our current lot is world class.

 

[Mamoon]

Your description of Akhtar made me laugh I must say: haven't heard anything so spot-on in a while.

Would you place Shaheen ahead of Mohammad Asif (exclude his disastrous match-fixing scandal) skill-wise?

I think that Shaheen in tests has a very bright future, but I don't think he is someone who should waste his time in T20 cricket, personally speaking.

I would rather he retires from T20s earlier to prolong his test match career than the other way around. He has all the ingredients for having a test career with more than 400+ wickets should luck favor him and if he is managed well.

The addition of Vernon Philander could help him developing a proper line-length in test cricket, and perhaps Philander could get him to swing the ball both ways to make him a lethal weapon.

Shaheen the test and ODI bowler is far superior than Shaheen the T20 bowler, as far as international cricket goes.

It is very close between young Amir and Shaheen, but Shaheen has the added advantage of his height which he hasn’t exploited yet.

If Shaheen can learn to use his height, he can easily become the best fast bowler in the world. He has all the qualities.

As far as retiring from T20s is concerned, I think it is too early for that. He is at a stage where he needs to bowl as much as he can and play all the formats.

His workload should be managed of course, but in my opinion, he needs to play all formats.

 

[Ab Fan]

Good bowler. Highly talented.

 

[UzmanBeast]

It is very close between young Amir and Shaheen, but Shaheen has the added advantage of his height which he hasn’t exploited yet.

If Shaheen can learn to use his height, he can easily become the best fast bowler in the world. He has all the qualities.

As far as retiring from T20s is concerned, I think it is too early for that. He is at a stage where he needs to bowl as much as he can and play all the formats.

His workload should be managed of course, but in my opinion, he needs to play all formats.

The part about height is correct: for someone who's about 6 ft 5, he hardly knows how to generate variable bounce for certain situations.

When I see Shaheen Shah Afridi right now, I see someone who's potentially got more skills than anyone Pakistan has produced at that respective age.

But I also see someone who isn't harnessing his full potential, mostly due to the inadequate and incompetent coaches he has had in his coaching career.

A team like India or England with Shaheen would have made him into the world's greatest bowler across all formats by now.

Tall bowlers throughout history, especially tall express fast bowlers, have had brutal bouncers. Whenever Shaheen bowls a bouncer, it looks so easy to negotiate.

Furthermore, once the ball stops swinging, I think that he really struggles against players who are strong on the back-foot, guys who can cut the marginally short ball or pull him on the front-foot on a short-pitched delivery.

His slower-ball is also not that effective, because it's not that difficult to spot, and he doesn't always have the best field set for it.

I do believe that under proper coaching and guidance, Shaheen would have reached 100 test wickets already, and would probably be around 70 ODI wickets and 45 T20I wickets.

It's a shame that the PCB has been so poor with managing and developing such a wonderful talent, a generational talent that is.

I can understand playing all formats, but I have my doubts over PCB's ability to manage his workload. There's a reason people from vastly more professional setups keep stressing the importance of managing Shaheen Afridi with great care. If only our incompetent and inept board heeds the subtle warnings these wise people give.

 

[Rana]

Akhtar is second tier among quicks in his era. First tier would be guys who averaged under 24: McGrath, Wasim, Ambrose etc.

Second tier would be guys like Gillespie and Akhtar.

Genuinely a class bowler. I can list some of the greatest wickets by Shoaib Akhtar, and nearly all of them have turned out to be some of the greatest moments for Pakistan fans.

1. Dravid+Sachin bowled back to back
2. Trescothic Bowled 2006 (Rawalpindi Test I believe)
3. Dravid Bowled in India 2007
4. Flintoff Bowled 2006 Pakistan
5. Mathew Hayden LBW 2005
6. Laxman bowled 2004 pakistan
7. Mark Waugh bowled Colombo
8. Steve Waugh lbw Colombo
9. Jacque Kallis 2007 caught behind
10. Jacque Kallis bowled 1998 Pakistan
11. Stephen Fleming Bowled 2002 Pakistan

I may have missed some blatant ones but these are just some of the biggest names of his era who Shoaib Akhtar has comprehensively dismisses through sheer pace and skill. The last I remember, Pakistan struggled to take 10 wickets in any Test in Australia with Shaheen Afridi, and they went for 600+ runs in their last Test in New Zealand (Shaheen playing).

Shaheen’s time will come, and he will hopefully build a portfolio like the one above in his playing career...but it’s incorrect to say that he is already better than Akhtar lol

 

[RedwoodOriginal]

Don't care what anyone else says.

If he is able to keep injuries to a bare minimum he will be the best fast-bowler in the world just a few years from now.

He has all the tools, talent, ability. He's got a little bit of that fire in his belly too. And most importantly, he is very young.

If this is how good he is after 3 years at the top-level, imagine how good he will be in a few years.

 

[RedwoodOriginal]

The part about height is correct: for someone who's about 6 ft 5, he hardly knows how to generate variable bounce for certain situations.

When I see Shaheen Shah Afridi right now, I see someone who's potentially got more skills than anyone Pakistan has produced at that respective age.

But I also see someone who isn't harnessing his full potential, mostly due to the inadequate and incompetent coaches he has had in his coaching career.

A team like India or England with Shaheen would have made him into the world's greatest bowler across all formats by now.

Tall bowlers throughout history, especially tall express fast bowlers, have had brutal bouncers. Whenever Shaheen bowls a bouncer, it looks so easy to negotiate.

Furthermore, once the ball stops swinging, I think that he really struggles against players who are strong on the back-foot, guys who can cut the marginally short ball or pull him on the front-foot on a short-pitched delivery.

His slower-ball is also not that effective, because it's not that difficult to spot, and he doesn't always have the best field set for it.

I do believe that under proper coaching and guidance, Shaheen would have reached 100 test wickets already, and would probably be around 70 ODI wickets and 45 T20I wickets.

It's a shame that the PCB has been so poor with managing and developing such a wonderful talent, a generational talent that is.

I can understand playing all formats, but I have my doubts over PCB's ability to manage his workload. There's a reason people from vastly more professional setups keep stressing the importance of managing Shaheen Afridi with great care. If only our incompetent and inept board heeds the subtle warnings these wise people give.

Really good analysis.

The managing part scares me. Because as you have rightly mentioned, PCB is terrible at managing its players but especially fast-bowlers. Almost every promising prospect in the last two decades has either had his career ruined due to injury or poor management from the PCB.

And they really need to start managing Shaheen's workload if they want him to have a future. That means primarily not playing him all the meaningless bilateral T20Is that Pakistan is going to play in the upcoming FTP. ODIs have been lessened to a great degree and test matches are obviously a must. But PCB really need to start getting a little smart with this before its too late.

 

[UzmanBeast]

Really good analysis.

The managing part scares me. Because as you have rightly mentioned, PCB is terrible at managing its players but especially fast-bowlers. Almost every promising prospect in the last two decades has either had his career ruined due to injury or poor management from the PCB.

And they really need to start managing Shaheen's workload if they want him to have a future. That means primarily not playing him all the meaningless bilateral T20Is that Pakistan is going to play in the upcoming FTP. ODIs have been lessened to a great degree and test matches are obviously a must. But PCB really need to start getting a little smart with this before its too late.

PCB getting smart is like asking a rabbit to turn into a crocodile. It won't happen.

I think the bowling coach, Vernon Philander, should be talking about resting Shaheen whenever possible.

I would adopt a more systematic approach with using him:

Against top-ranked teams, he should be playing every game.

Against low-ranked teams, he should only play where necessary.

The reason I'm saying that T20s are not that important is that a four-over spell can be bowled by any bowler; we can find someone to take over his role and do roughly the same job.

In ODIs and Tests, we're never going to find someone as refined as Shaheen Afridi in a long time.

 

[Junaids]

Alright, can you please explain this comment. How is he already a better bowler than Akhtar?

Shoaib was a nobody. Shaheen is less than 100 Test wickets behind him and he’s only 21.

Shoaib destroyed his career by wearing out his body trying to bowl too fast.

 

[Rana]

Shoaib was a nobody. Shaheen is less than 100 Test wickets behind him and he’s only 21.

Shoaib destroyed his career by wearing out his body trying to bowl too fast.

Mohammad Abbas is around 70 wickets away from beating Shoaib. Abbas has hit a brick wall recently, not sure how he will get to 200 Test wickets and how long Pakistan will persist with him. Stats are not the complete indication of a player’s value. Shaheen will overtake Shoaib, but he hasn’t done anything of note to be viewed as an already better bowler than him.

 

[JattMaula]

Mohammad Abbas is around 70 wickets away from beating Shoaib. Abbas has hit a brick wall recently, not sure how he will get to 200 Test wickets and how long Pakistan will persist with him. Stats are not the complete indication of a player’s value. Shaheen will overtake Shoaib, but he hasn’t done anything of note to be viewed as an already better bowler than him.

Abbas is like million years old. Chota Lala Shaheen is just 21.

 

[Rana]

Abbas is like million years old. Chota Lala Shaheen is just 21.

I have a feeling Chota Lala Shaheen’s first 170 Test wickets will not be as mesmerising as Shoaib’s. Happy to be proven wrong by him, let’s see if he can produce a spell like the one Shoaib did in Colombo where he bowled out Ponting, Waugh bros and Gilchrist in a space of some deliveries.

In this modern age, that’s like bowling out Kohli, Pujara, Rahane and Pant. This is never going to happen. The next best thing Shaheen can do is bowl out Latham, Kane, Ross and Nichols one after the other in a space of overs.

Another thing Shaheen can do at a young age is replicate the back to back bowled wickets of Dravid and Sachin by getting out Labushagne and Smith when he gets a chance.

It’s unreal, unimaginable stuff dude. Shoaib was a phenom, I take a lot of offence to people calling him a nobody.

 

[JattMaula]

I have a feeling Chota Lala Shaheen’s first 170 Test wickets will not be as mesmerising as Shoaib’s. Happy to be proven wrong by him, let’s see if he can produce a spell like the one Shoaib did in Colombo where he bowled out Ponting, Waugh bros and Gilchrist in a space of some deliveries.

In this modern age, that’s like bowling out Kohli, Pujara, Rahane and Pant. This is never going to happen. The next best thing Shaheen can do is bowl out Latham, Kane, Ross and Nichols one after the other in a space of overs.

Another thing Shaheen can do at a young age is replicate the back to back bowled wickets of Dravid and Sachin by getting out Labushagne and Smith when he gets a chance.

It’s unreal, unimaginable stuff dude. Shoaib was a phenom, I take a lot of offence to people calling him a nobody.

Hey I didn't compare Rawalpindi express with Chota Lala. You bought Abbas in the conversation. Now that is a insult.

 

[Rana]

Hey I didn't compare Rawalpindi express with Chota Lala. You bought Abbas in the conversation. Now that is a insult.

No you did not but someone else did and the reason they use is Akhtar only has 167 wickets

 

[Bewal Express]

Still inconsistent and not sure of his role.

 

[gazza619]

Shaheen bowls far too many freebies for my liking.

I think he needs to find a way of being a bit more economical.

He is still the best we got though.

 

[drubwrubnat]

Definitely world class athlete, rockstar, and has all the abilities.

Comparisons can be made to legends like wa, wy and shoaib, and the reason these 3 were a class apart - ferocious and so intelligent because they know exactly how to dominate batsman’s weaknesses. They were always a step ahead & used to work out batsmen. I m looking forward to see the thought with which Shaheen will bowl, in this wc.

 

[Rana]

Akhtar is a nobody.

He took only 174 Test wickets. Yes he had his physical limitations, but in spite of those limitations, he could have taken 350+ Test wickets if he had a better attitude and took better care of his body.

Unlike Akhtar, Shaheen has his priorities in the right place. He is less than a hundred wickets away from Akhtar’s tally and has at least 12-13 years left, so let’s not disrespect by comparing him to a self-appointed great whose mouth is bigger than his legacy.

Clearly you have never actually seen him bowl. I suppose you started watching cricket when IPL began.

 

[Cric1234]

If he doesn’t get injured, he will go down as Pakistan’s fourth greatest fast bowler after Wasim, Imran and Waqar.

In fact, personally speaking, I would put him above Waqar. If he bowls with the type of balls that Waqar bowled with and against tail-enders who didn’t know how to hold a bat, he would have had a similar impact to Waqar.

Shaheen too would wreak havoc with those heavily doctored balls that our bowlers bowled with in the 80s and 90s.

Had Waqar bowled today, he would not fare much better than Shaheen. In fact, he would definitely be more expensive.

So in my view, he is already the third best fast bowler produced by Pakistan (yes, ahead of Akhtar as well) and the best Pakistani cricketer today because potential wise he is good as any fast bowler around today.

Babar and Rizwan are excellent but there are several better batsmen even on raw potential, but Shaheen can be as good as anyone.

He is one of those who could wonders under a proper bowling coach. For example, someone like Bharat Arun could elevate him to Bumrah’s level.

We have seen his amazing potential against the best teams a minnow basher while Akhtar could take the pitch out of the equation and produce match winning spells against any team.

 

[cricenjoyer]

A very good talent who however needs to develop the art of setting batsmen up and bowling with discipline on flat pitches.

Both Hasan and Faheem out-bowled him in the second test, mainly due to the fact that they weren't looking to over attack rather they kept their lines and lengths tight. If he can work on that aspect of his game and also look to improve his ability to reverse the ball than he will be the complete package

 

[Rana]

We have seen his amazing potential against the best teams a minnow basher while Akhtar could take the pitch out of the equation and produce match winning spells against any team.

The man hasn’t watched proper cricket. Absolute foolish statement to say Shaheen has already achieved more than Akhtar

 

[Moiz14]

Way inexperienced... Very average... Can't bowl consistently at 140 on one spot and play with batter and set him up, same is the issue with hassan... In limited overs also he is only good with new ball, very bad death bowler... OK bowler for most.. No way near Bumrah, shami, Cummins Boult Siraj Nortje Anderson etc

 

[moghul]

Young and very promising , but he is not Wasim or Waqar . Two Ws knew how to bowl and take wickets on dead wickets also. Hard to blame him, he has not played much cricket in Pakistan , not many test and FC games.

I guess Naseem is a quick learner and will learn how to bowl on Pakistani wickets in test

I understand , after his recent performance in test, Hasan could have not been dropped but he is deteriorating fast and after this series, if he does not perform , should be replaced by Naseem . Naseem is our future not Hasan.

 

[Mamoon]

Clearly you have never actually seen him bowl. I suppose you started watching cricket when IPL began.

I watched his whole career and I saw him missing more than 50% of the matches that Pakistan played in his time.

Akhtar was a world class Test bowler for a period of 18-24 monthly only between 2001 and 2002. Apart from that he was a nothing special Test bowler. He has his own legacy because of his speed and the aura that he carried but in terms of effectiveness, he was nothing special in Tests.

With only 178 Test wickets to his name, he has no legacy in this format and Shaheen doesn’t need to do much to surpass him. When Asif emerged in 2004-2005, he showed Akhtar how a world class Test bowler operates.

 

[Mamoon]

The man hasn’t watched proper cricket. Absolute foolish statement to say Shaheen has already achieved more than Akhtar

Akhtar is not a representation of proper Test cricket. He should hang his head in shame for ending up with 178 Test wickets only. Shaheen will surely take more wickets than him in the Test format.

 

[Mamoon]

We have seen his amazing potential against the best teams a minnow basher while Akhtar could take the pitch out of the equation and produce match winning spells against any team.

It is a myth that Akhtar took the pitch out of the equation. He only did that in a handful of series. I can list multiple series where he bowled rubbish on flat tracks and couldn’t penetrate batting lineups. Akhtar only took 178 Test wickets so he is not a benchmark for Shaheen or any young fast bowler.

If you have a 15 year long international career and only take 178 Test wickets, you are a nobody.

 

[Savak]

Shaheen was a big disappointment in this series so far. He doesn't use his height, 90% of his deliveries are full pitched up and after a while that same bowling approach and line of attack becomes predictable against quality players.

You can't just blindly keep pitching the ball up on surfaces which offer nothing to the fast bowlers. You have to bowl 1-2 bouncers in an over to keep the batsman guessing, to mess with their footwork in order to make the full delivery more effective.

Also Waqar was getting frustrated by his bowling tactics with a reverse swinging ball where he kept bowling at 140-143 km/hr trying to bowl an inswinging reversing yorker to Khawaja ball after ball and Waqar was like "the guy is batting on 150 not out, it's not working, try something else, that yorker has to be a surprise delivery, it's useless if you keep bowling the same delivery 6 balls out of 6". Shaheen needs to learn to reverse the ball in both directions with the old ball and also learn to hide the shine of the ball till the last minute like the great Wasim Akram mastered.