Former Pakistan men's cricket team head coach Mickey Arthur has slammed the selectors for not including Shaheen Afridi in the Test squad for South Africa tour. Afridi who was dropped/rested from the two Tests against England after the loss in series opener was not named in the Test squad for South Africa. Selector and white-ball head coach Aqib Javed said that Afridi hasn't been picked keeping his workload ahead of ICC Champions Trophy 2025 in mind. However, as per reports, the left-arm pacer had requested to miss the Test series against South Africa and West Indies to make his Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) debut for Fortune Barishal.
"I can't believe it. If he's not bowling in South Africa, then where the hell are they bowling him? It's the best place to bowl in the world, almost. Plus, he gives you a left-arm option. I know they have got Mir Hamza, but Shaheen is a game-breaker and match-winner," Arthur said in an interaction with ESPNcricinfo.
"I'm not in the inner echelon in terms of knowing the ins and outs of why they haven't selected him, but on pure skill, I would have him in South Africa in any team I pick," he added.
Pakistan out of WTC final race
Pakistan have four Tests remaining in the current World Test Championship (WTC) 2023-25 cycle. Even if they win all the Tests, the best finish will be the fourth position for them. They won't be able to qualify for the WTC 2023-25 final until and unless two teams get docked a large number of points for maintaining a slow over rate, which is highly unlikely. Keeping this in mind, Afridi may have decided to skip the red-ball games.
Shaheen's record in South Africa and WTC
Afridi played two Tests on the 2018-19 tour and claimed nine wickets at an average of 26.66. The 24-year-old is Pakistan's highest wicket-taker in WTC history. He has 94 wickets from 26 Tests at an average of 28.65 including three five-wicket hauls.