Shaheen Shah Afridi bowled a spell of 3/31 and took two wickets in the powerplay to rattle India early in the game. Pakistan skipper Babar Azam won the toss and put India on to bat. Afridi came hard at the Indian top-order batsman and made the difference early on in the game. Aakash Chopra in his post-match analysis credited the Pakistan pacer for delivering with the ball.
Afridi dismissed Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul in his first two overs to put India behind in the game. then returned to get rid of Virat Kohli when the Indian skipper was threatening to take India to a reasonable score.
While reviewing the game on his Youtube channel, Aakash Chopra credited Shaheen Afridi for delivering a match-winning spell. He got the ball to swing early and extracted most of the conditions in the opening overs to put India on the backfoot.
“My Player of the Match is Shaheen Shah Afridi. Shah defeated India and the way he did it. You do win the toss and bowl first but India’s cream is at the top, you get a lot of quality batting there.”
My Player of the Match is Shaheen Shah Afridi: Aakash Chopra
Chopra further highlighted that Afridi bowled unplayable deliveries to both Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul. Even Nasser Hussain used the term unplayable on commentary while describing KL Rahul’s dismissal.
“He got Rohit Sharma out at the start in the first over and then KL Rahul in the second over. Those deliveries were unplayable balls at 145 kmph and he was getting the ball to swing, pitching it up, hitting the pads or the stumps. This is phenomenal” said Chopra.
Chopra further found similarities between the opening spells of Afridi and Mohammad Amir in the 2017 ICC Champions Trophy final.
Shaheen Afridi, you beauty đź‘Ś
What a peach of a delivery as Rohit Sharma is gone for a 🦆
© @ICC #T20WorldCupsquad #INDvPAK pic.twitter.com/fUrRE18yNX
— Malik Ali Raza (@MalikAliiRaza) October 24, 2021
“That bowling quality, two spells were remembered – one that Mohammad Amir bowled in the Asia Cup and then again Mohammad Amir in the Champions Trophy. Pakistan has got another left-arm fast bowler. They have had a very good legacy and Shaheen Shah Afridi is taking it forward.”
India face New Zealand in their next game in Dubai on October 31 while Pakistan face the Kiwis on October 26 in Sharjah.
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