Shaheen Afridi shouldn’t have conceded three sixes in semi-final despite Hasan Ali’s dropped catch: Shahid Afridi

Pakistan’s sensational campaign in the T20 World Cup 2021 ended in the semi-final as they suffered a shocking five-wicket defeat against Australia. Having posted 176/4 while batting first in Dubai, the Men in Green looked all set to make a place in the final clash. However, some brute hitting from Matthew Wade and Marcus Stoinis changed the course of the game.

Wade was brilliant in particular as he scored an unbeaten 41 off mere 17 deliveries. He smashed Shaheen Afridi for three sixes in the penultimate over to take his side over the line. Notably, Hasan Ali had dropped Wade’s catch in the very same over and the dasher made Pakistan pay.

While Ali received a lot of flak for his poor effort on the field, former Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi reckons Shaheen shouldn’t have conceded three sixes even after the drop catch. Afridi feels the left-arm speedster should have gone for wide yorkers in order to control the run flow.

Shaheen Afridi should have made a better comeback: Shahid Afridi  

“I am not pleased with Shaheen because even if Hasan spilled the catch, he could have tried wide yorkers instead of bowling in the batter’s arc. A dropped catch doesn’t mean a bowler should concede three sixes off the next three balls. Shaheen has got so much pace and I think he could have made a better comeback. He’s not the type of a bowler who can be smacked for sixes just like that,” Afridi was quoted as saying by Cricwick.

Meanwhile, Pakistan captain Babar Azam admitted that Ali’s error on the field was the turning point of the game. “The turning point was that dropped catch. Had we taken it, the scenario could have been different. The way we gelled and played the entire tournament, I am satisfied as a captain. Hopefully, we’ll learn from this for the next tournament. When you play so well throughout, there were small mistakes that cost us the match in the end,” Azam said after the game.

Meanwhile, Australia will now meet their Trans-Tasman rivals New Zealand in the final clash. The high-voltage game takes place at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium on November 14 (Sunday).