'We face Shaheen, Haris, Naseem in the nets' - Abdullah Shafique to reporter's question on facing Jasprit Bumrah challenge in Asia Cup

Pakistan batter Abdullah Shafique gave a blunt response to a question about the Babar Azam-led side's clash against India in the much-awaited Asia Cup. The continental championship will begin on August 30 with Pakistan taking on debutants Nepal at the Multan Cricket Stadium.

Team India are preparing for the challenge, and the Men in Blue received a major boost as their star pacer Jasprit Bumrah is set to strengthen their pace attack. Bumrah was out due to injury for a long time and will make his return in the away T20I series against Ireland. Meanwhile, Shami and Siraj, who did not take part in the recently concluded ODI series against West Indies, are also expected to return to action and will bolster India's formidable bowling attack.

Meanwhile, Shafique is confident that Pakistan can overcome India's formidable fast-bowling attack in the Asia Cup. The 23-year-old believes Pakistan's net sessions, where he faces the country's pace sensations like Shaheen Afridi, Haris Rauf, and Naseem Shah, will help the batters in the multi-nation event.

“You face Haris, Naseem, Shaheen in the nets all the time during practice sessions. Do you find it easy when you take on the opposition bowlers then? Particularly if you talk about India... since it looks like Jasprit Bumrah is also coming back for Asia Cup,” a reporter asked Shafique during a media interaction.

"Our bowling attack is pretty good, in fact, the best in the world. We face them (Shaheen, Haris, Naseem) in the nets… we face their challenging spells. And that gives us a lot of confidence and helps in our preparation. If we are playing good against them, we are obviously more confident against opponent bowlers,” Shafique replied as quoted by HT.

India and Pakistan will face off in the Asia Cup at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium on September 2. Meanwhile, both teams will also lock horns in the 2023 ICC Cricket World Cup on October 14 at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.