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The much-awaited Asia Cup kicks off on Sunday, with the subcontinental El Clasico between India and Pakistan to take place on Sunday, August 28, and players of both teams have been meeting and greeting each other during the training sessions at the ICC Academy in Dubai.
A day after Virat Kohli and Pakistan captain Babar Azam met, left-arm pacer Shaheen Afridi interacted with India stars, including Kohli, Rishabh Pant, KL Rahul, and Yuzvendra Chahal. Despite being ruled out of Asia Cup 2022 due to a knee injury, Shaheen has travelled to the UAE with the Pakistan squad, and the left-arm pacer was seen wearing a knee brace as he interacted with the Indian cricketers.
A video of the players interacting was shared by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), where Shaheen can be seen having a chat with the Indian players who are seemingly headed to a training session at the ICC Academy. Shaheen can be seen having a long chat with Kohli at the end of which the former captain thanks the fast bowler for his best wishes.
Shaheen also jokes around with Pant and says that he is planning to bat for Pakistan at the Asia Cup.
The young pacer also met vice-captain KL Rahul, who himself is returning to T20I action after recovering from injury and ill health. Rahul led India in the three-match ODI series in Zimbabwe earlier in August and is yet to play a T20I for India in the ongoing World Cup year.
Shaheen has been an instrumental part of the international set-up for Pakistan in recent years. He helped his side beat India by 10 wickets in the 2021 T20 World Cup, completely knocking over the top order.
Meanwhile, India will be led by Rohit Sharma in a T20I match against Pakistan for the first time as the defending champions look to begin their campaign at the Asia Cup with a morale-boosting win. The Men in Blue have their own injury concerns, with both star pacers Harshal Patel and Jasprit Bumrah ruled out of the competition.
Meanwhile, former Pakistan captain Wasim Akram has earlier said that Shaheen's absence will have a big impact on Pakistan's chances, highlighting the lack of variety in the bowling attack. "Shaheen Afridi will be missed a lot. He is important because of the new ball. In this format, if you have to restrict the opposition by taking early wickets and that is what they do. He attacks the stumps in all formats," he told Star Sports.
The Pakistan Cricket Board named right-arm pacer Mohammad Hasnain as Shaheen's replacement for Asia Cup. In a further blow, however, Bowling all-rounder Mohammad Wasim suffered back pain during training in Dubai ahead of the high-octane clash against India on August 28.
