Pakistan's premier pacer Shaheen Afridi defended his teammate Usama Mir after he dropped David Warner's catch in the clash against Australia at M.Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru on October 20. Warner’s catch was dropped off Afridi’s bowling in the fifth over. He made Pakistan pay for the lapse in the field and scored a record-breaking 163. Later, Abdullah Shafique and skipper Babar Azam dropped one catch each as well to make matters worse for the Pakistan side. Despite a few fielding blunders, Afridi backed his teammates ahead of the clash against Afghanistan.
“Dropping a catch is part of game. I think what is important is the effort and how much energy you put in when you are fielding and how much you enjoy it,” Afridi said in a video posted by Cricket Pakistan.
“It was his (Mir) first game, no doubt, but sometimes such crucial catches are important. You cannot blame anyone because of one dropped catch. This is a team game and we win or lose as a team. What is important is that everyone continues to contribute for the team.”
While Australia posted a daunting total of 367/9, Afridi prevented it from going over 400. After both openers departed, Australia could not capitalise as Afridi stuck thrice in the slog overs. He took five wickets and conceded 54 runs on a batting paradise of a wicket.
“I was aware of the fact that it is a high-scoring venue and I was mentally prepared for it. I tried different variations as you have to do to be successful on such pitches. So, bowling variations and pulling my length a little back helped me,” the left-arm pacer said
“It is very important to acclimatise as a bowler. It is not like that I have done something new, but I have gotten used to the conditions here. You do not get that much swing in India as you do in England, Australia or New Zealand. There is not much bounce in the pitches here either, because of which we get to see high-scoring games here. So, being good in the field becomes of utmost importance as a couple of good catches or run outs can boost your team,” he added.
Pakistan will take on Afghanistan at MA Chidambaram Stadium. Pakistan are currently fifth on the points table with two wins from four games and a negative net run rate (NRR).
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