Former Pakistan cricketer and now coach, Basit Ali has claimed that pacer Shaheen Afridi was dropped from the Test squad as a part of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Mohsin Naqvi's surgery on the team.
Shaheen was excluded from the squad for the second Test match against Bangladesh at Rawalpindi on August 30, as he was replaced by specialist wrist spinner Abrar Ahmed.
While Pakistan head coach Jason Gillespie had issued a statement during the press conference that Shaheen's exclusion was a strategic decision to rest him, Basit had an entirely different take.
MORE: Is Shaheen Afridi dropped or rested? How Pakistan could lineup against Bangladesh in 2nd Test
The 24-year-old pacer had welcomed a baby boy last week and it is likely that he will use this break to spend time with his family.
“We had a good conversation with him, and he fully understands the situation. This break will allow him to spend quality time with his family,”
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What did Basit Ali say about Pakistan dropping Shaheen Afridi ahead of the 2nd Test against Bangladesh?
Basit, who was speaking on his YouTube channel claimed that Shaheen was dropped as a part of a surgery stated by PCB Chairman Naqvi following Pakistan's poor performance in the T20 World Cup 2024.
He believes that dropping Shaheen is only the start of the many other cricketers. Earlier, the PCB had removed former cricketers Wahab Riaz and Abdul Razzaq from the selection committee, which Basit claimed was only a minor surgery.
The first surgery has been done. Shaheen Afridi was dropped as a part of PCB Chairman's surgery on the Pakistan team. Removing Wahab Riaz and Abdul Razzaq was a minor surgery. However, this is a major surgery.
Moreover, fans had speculated that Shaheen being dropped from the team might be related to his un-teammate like incident against Test skipper Shan Masood, where he had shrugged the latter player's embrace.
However, Basit did not feel that it was a major reason to exclude the pacer from the team.
"People have been speculating that Shaheen was dropped because he removed Shan Masood's hand from his shoulder. I don't think that is the reason," he said.
However, he said that Shaheen's dropping should be an important wake-up call for other non-performing Pakistan players including Masood, who had not only suffered his fourth consecutive loss as Test captain but has also largely been disappointing with the bat.
"Shaheen Afridi's case will be a wake-up call for the Pakistani players. It is also a wake-up call for Shan Masood as well. Shan Masood won't remain the captain if Pakistan fail to level the series. The media and the fans won't keep quiet if you lose a series against Bangladesh," he added.
Pakistan will face off in a must-win match against Bangladesh during the second Test at Rawalpindi. While Bangladesh need only a draw to win the series, the hosts need to win the Test, to avoid an embarrassing series defeat.
MORE: PAK vs BAN 2nd Test: Lineups, h2h, toss, predictions and odds
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