Shahid Afridi - The Test match cricketer, an unfulfilled promise

[stevewittry]

While he is traditionally branded as boom boom or one most suited to the shortest version of the game, it comes out as an irony that his performance in the long format or red ball cricket has been the best. A batting average of about 35 is several points higher than his ODI average which is sub 20.

It must be noted that he also played out as a test match opening batsman and in one of those innings scored a match winning 140+ in memorable Chennai test against India.

He was equally menacing with the ball particularly when the pitch has some turn on offer and helped Pakistan win the test match in Bangalore in 2005 and tie the series - a feat that has been too steep to achieve for visiting teams to India.

His best performances have come against the arch rivals which speaks volumes about his ability to deliver when the stakes are high and in testing conditions prevailing in test match scenario.

In the home series against England and Pakistan in 2005/06, He scored heavily with the bat and impressed with the ball.

Given his success in the longer format it was strange why he chose to retire from the longer version while he was at the peak of his cricketing prowess. Playing and performing in test matches has traditionally helped players improve their game and mental toughness and emerge as better cricketers.

What do you think has been the reason for not focusing in the best format of the game ?
Was it a decision that in hindsight appears as hasty and an unfulfilled promise ? Please respond.

 

[Arham_PakFan]

I think Afridi should have played more tests after 2006. However he shouldn't have announced a comeback in 2010. Retiring after one match was hilarious.

 

[Suleiman]

He left at the right time with his stats intact like any legend should

 

[stevewittry]

Point is he might have been a better player and his ODI average might have jumped up a few points if he played tests.

 

[Bilal7]

He did not have the heart for test cricket but had the talent and ability to become the Pakistani Kapil Dev. Averaging in the 32-35 range with bat and ball was definitely not beyond him, nor was playing over a hundred test matches, in terms of fitness.

 

[happydavy]

To play test cricket you need guts, which Afridi didn't have. It needs a lot of courage to stand up against fast bowlers and brave out the tough conditions or situations. But Afridi onky knew the easy way to deal with tough situations which was to slog. Agression is about facing tough situations and coming out triumph, not hitting mindlessly and hoping for good days.

 

[the_outsider]

Wasn't unfulfilled. He did what he was capable of. Afridi was never test quality. If anything, I'd say he overachieved in tests.

 

[Ab Fan]

I don't think he would have maintained those numbers if he had a full-fledged career.

 

[stevewittry]

I think we are bit unfair by calling out that Afridi has overachieved in tests on the basis of ODI stats. The guy was asked to open the innings in one of the toughest tours to India and he came out with flying colours.

In the limited opportunities presented to him in tests, he has shown a new approach towards batting in test matches- an approach that was later picked up by the likes of Sehwag and Gilchrist. He was not shy of opening the innings and negotiate the new ball either.

And an average of 35+ for a bowling all rounder is world class.

It's a pity that he had chosen to give up test matches for the glamour of limited overs cricket and that he could not reproduce the consistency and form shown in longer formats into the shortest formats.

 

[Justcrazy]

Afridi would have been very good as second spinner specially in UAE and asian pitches. That would have given Pakistan a good depth in test Matches. Now and then he could get some good hitting down the order.

 

[ElRaja]

lol at afridi being an over achiever in test cricket. most of the people commenting probably didn't even see much of his test career. he was one of the better players of spin pak had during his time, great eye for flight, even if impetuous at times.

his problem, partially self created, was he never got a consistent run in the test team. he should have been persisted with as paks number six.

in the two years under woolmer (the only time he had a consistent run, with a designated batting position) he averaged 45 odd with a 100+ s/r, no minnow bashing, just making use of easier batting conditions.

alas he was never interested in the long game, and those stats, given his lack of interest speak volumes of how good he could have been.

for his ability to play spin alone, if he had committed to test cricket he would have been a 40+ average batsmen given how much cricket pak eventually played in the m/e.

 

[rhony]

He had potential to score a 50 here or there in subcontinent pitches with some luck. He would have been a sitting duck abroad. His bowling was alright for LOIs but that's it. Whatever he scored in tests is a miracle in itself considering he had neither the technique nor the attitude for test cricket

 

[Pete Rose]

He was a mediocre cricketer in all three formats who reinvented himself as leg spinner to become a star in the most useless form of the game. His undeservingly long career ruined the mindset of a generation of cricketers who thought its ok to perform once in a blue moon. A most useless footnote of Pakistan cricket

 

[Junaids]

He underachieved horribly, which is why Shahid Afridi has gone down in history as a nobody.

When Wasim Akram retired in 2003 he took with him the rough that Saqlain Mushtaq needed to be a Test cricketer.

And Mushtaq Ahmed’s knees were gone.

Pakistan should have had a Test Golden Age, with Shahid Afridi batting at 6, Abdul Razzaq at 7, Azhar Mahmood at 8, Kamran Akmal at 9, Shoaib Akhtar at 10 and Mohammad Asif at 11.

Shahid Afridi’s refusal to work hard to refine and improve his batting and bowling was a tragedy.

 

[Last Monetarist]

Afridi's innings at Chennai in 1999 is one of the most memorable test innings I've seen, it was the sort of innings you'd expect someone like Michael Slater to play in that era; the same type of opener's innings which was refined and executed with great skill by Sehwag over the following decade.

I honestly thought Pakistan had unearthed one of the great test match openers, but it was another false dawn.

 

[Chokli]

He didn't have the patience and lacked the brain cells to succeed in Test cricket.

Constructing an innings takes one helluva toll on the brain.

He just didn't have that ability.

 

[Slog]

Afridi's innings at Chennai in 1999 is one of the most memorable test innings I've seen, it was the sort of innings you'd expect someone like Michael Slater to play in that era; the same type of opener's innings which was refined and executed with great skill by Sehwag over the following decade.

I honestly thought Pakistan had unearthed one of the great test match openers, but it was another false dawn.

You were probably a kid then so you can chalk that down to lack of understanding of the game

 

[Last Monetarist]

You were probably a kid then so you can chalk that down to lack of understanding of the game

There was an element of childish wonder in that assessment, but that knock showed a great deal of promise. I think it was overshadowed by Tendulkar's effort in the fourth innings, which is why a lot of people have forgotten about it. I hated Afridi the ODI cricketer with a passion, but that century made me think for the first time that maybe the hype was justified. But he was back to slogging blindly within a month and all was forgotten.

 

[MenInG]

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Good old days&#55357;&#56832; <a href="https://t.co/6au8VSrdYZ">https://t.co/6au8VSrdYZ</a></p>— Shahid Afridi (@SAfridiOfficial) <a href="https://twitter.com/SAfridiOfficial/status/1087361527147945984?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 21, 2019</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

 

[Sami92]

To play test cricket you need guts, which Afridi didn't have. It needs a lot of courage to stand up against fast bowlers and brave out the tough conditions or situations. But Afridi onky knew the easy way to deal with tough situations which was to slog. Agression is about facing tough situations and coming out triumph, not hitting mindlessly and hoping for good days.

I understand. I believe that he could have just featured in the team mainly as a spinner and bat at 8 so that he could enjoy more or less option of slogging.

 

[AAli98]

Afridi test average 37 Asad Test specialist Safiq average 38.

 

[Ilan Bluestone]

He was a mediocre cricketer in all three formats who reinvented himself as leg spinner to become a star in the most useless form of the game. His undeservingly long career ruined the mindset of a generation of cricketers who thought its ok to perform once in a blue moon. A most useless footnote of Pakistan cricket

This is right on the money.

My thought is that Afridi was an actor who tricked the world into believing he was a cricketer for 20 years, and we bought it.

 

[Chokli]

This is right on the money.

My thought is that Afridi was an actor who tricked the world into believing he was a cricketer for 20 years, and we bought it.

all because of that fluke century.

look at what new zealand did to corey anderson who broke the record.

he's no where to be seen, now if corey anderson was a pakistani he'd probably be captain by now.

 

[pillionrider]

Am old enough to have seen Afridi in Tests.

Anwar was the perfect player opposite Afridi, as he seemed to have some control over him. Don't recall how or why the partnership unraveled.

Pretty sure Afridi could have averaged around 35-40 with some spectacular innings thrown in, over a 80-100 test career. Can't recall who Pakistan's openers have been in the last 15 years other than Salman Butt, so it's not like they had someone else to offer better numbers. Add to that his bowling, and he could have been a test match winner especially in the subcontinent.

 

[Pete Rose]

This is right on the money.

My thought is that Afridi was an actor who tricked the world into believing he was a cricketer for 20 years, and we bought it.

Phew! I was expecting another notification re: Shafiq

 

[cricketAXEpert]

While he is traditionally branded as boom boom or one most suited to the shortest version of the game, it comes out as an irony that his performance in the long format or red ball cricket has been the best. A batting average of about 35 is several points higher than his ODI average which is sub 20.

It must be noted that he also played out as a test match opening batsman and in one of those innings scored a match winning 140+ in memorable Chennai test against India.

He was equally menacing with the ball particularly when the pitch has some turn on offer and helped Pakistan win the test match in Bangalore in 2005 and tie the series - a feat that has been too steep to achieve for visiting teams to India.

His best performances have come against the arch rivals which speaks volumes about his ability to deliver when the stakes are high and in testing conditions prevailing in test match scenario.

In the home series against England and Pakistan in 2005/06, He scored heavily with the bat and impressed with the ball.

Given his success in the longer format it was strange why he chose to retire from the longer version while he was at the peak of his cricketing prowess. Playing and performing in test matches has traditionally helped players improve their game and mental toughness and emerge as better cricketers.

What do you think has been the reason for not focusing in the best format of the game ?
Was it a decision that in hindsight appears as hasty and an unfulfilled promise ? Please respond.

Afridi no doubt had talent and ability, but he always lacked discipline. And Once he figured out that he does not need to play tests and be a cricket star without tests that he quit. His sudden abandonment of Pakistan team mid tour. Made Salman Butt the captain (by accident) and he destroyed Pakistan cricket by spot fixing.

Shahid Afridi had heaps of talent but Test cricket requires hard work (which he never wanted to put in) & responsibility (which he never had).

 

[Savak]

The PCB didn't utilize Afridi in his prime sufficiently. He in interviews mentioned he was frustrated with the policy of being picked in one game and then sitting on the bench for the rest of the series. Plus with the massive volume of cricket being played around the world and his advancing years, he decided to sensibly step away from the format knowing he was a misfit in it.

 

[Oneking]

The PCB didn't utilize Afridi in his prime sufficiently. He in interviews mentioned he was frustrated with the policy of being picked in one game and then sitting on the bench for the rest of the series. Plus with the massive volume of cricket being played around the world and his advancing years, he decided to sensibly step away from the format knowing he was a misfit in it.

He quit test cricket thx to Salman Butt and politics in Pak side at the time and he didn’t want it to part of it it’s on records look it up

 

[hitthestump]

After Waz and co. retired he was one of the few cricketers Pakistan had left with actual swag. Coming from a country which was absolutely renowned for throwing up mavericks at that time he definitely helped retain some of my interest in the game. Pakistan cricket was as dull as dishwater from 2007 onwards and probably would have been borderline unwatchable without Afridi's presence given what we are used to. It's taken a long time for the new semi-exciting crop to come along.

 

[gazza619]

Test cricket was exciting when book boom was on song

 

[Ab Fan]

He was a massive underachiever.

 

[Ilan Bluestone]

Phew! I was expecting another notification re: Shafiq

Hahaha.

I genuinely never have any vitriol towards anyone. I think that's childish.

Opinions are their own, disliking people for is low class.

 

[chacha kashmiri]

After Waz and co. retired he was one of the few cricketers Pakistan had left with actual swag. Coming from a country which was absolutely renowned for throwing up mavericks at that time he definitely helped retain some of my interest in the game. Pakistan cricket was as dull as dishwater from 2007 onwards and probably would have been borderline unwatchable without Afridi's presence given what we are used to. It's taken a long time for the new semi-exciting crop to come along.

Him and shoaib Akhtar were superstars
I definitely think shoaib Akhtar underachieved too even with all the liposuction surgeries etc he could definitely have achieved more

As for Afridi, he admitted to mental shortcomings just like the likes of Jonathan Trott and Marcus Trescothic have done

 

[PakLFC]

He was never a Test Cricketer. He didn't have the maturity, patience or technique to be that.

 

[happydavy]

If any good talented youngster gets an entry into world cricket and gets an automatic entry into almost every match his country plays for next 15 years, then really what worse could he do with bat than averaging 23? I know many Pakistanis love Afridi, but his batting record for someone who played for 400 ODIs is as bad as it could get. Any half decent batsman if given a chance to play for 400 ODIs (50% in flat wickets of UAE, India and Pakistan) would end up with atleast 8000 runs. His bowling record is much better than his batting record though, close to 1 wicket per game is fairly decent.

 

[Smbhayi]

If any good talented youngster gets an entry into world cricket and gets an automatic entry into almost every match his country plays for next 15 years, then really what worse could he do with bat than averaging 23? I know many Pakistanis love Afridi, but his batting record for someone who played for 400 ODIs is as bad as it could get. Any half decent batsman if given a chance to play for 400 ODIs (50% in flat wickets of UAE, India and Pakistan) would end up with atleast 8000 runs. His bowling record is much better than his batting record though, close to 1 wicket per game is fairly decent.

absolute wrong.. lot of cricketers gives up due to bad fitness.. to playing 400+ games is no joke..

 

[RidiculousMan]

Was he an underrated Test player?

In just 27 matches he scored 1716 runs at 36 average and 87 Strike rate! He also scored 5 hundreds and 8 fifties.

With the ball he took 48 wickets at 35 average as well

 

[RidiculousMan]

Was he an underrated Test player?

In just 27 matches he scored 1716 runs at 36 average and 87 Strike rate! He also scored 5 hundreds and 8 fifties.

With the ball he took 48 wickets at 35 average as well

With this record and high strike rate he would've walked into England's BazzBall side

 

[BunnyRabbit]

Tests were incredibly fun during 2005-06.