T20 World Cup 2022: Shaheen Afridi's vicious yorker leaves Rahmanullah Gurbaz in severe pain

Before the T20 World Cup Super 12 encounter against India, if there had been any concerns about Shaheen Shah Afridi's fitness, it was dispelled by the pacer. The left-arm seamer bowled a brilliant opening spell in the warm-up fixture against Afghanistan at the Brisbane Cricket Ground, and his perfect yorker led to Rahmanullah Gurbaz being taken off the field on a teammate’s shoulders.

Shaheen Afridi, who had been out of the international setup for quite some time owing to his injury, returned to bowling in Pakistan’s first warm-up game against England. He returned for the next game against Afghanistan and opened Pakistan’s innings with the ball.

Haztratullah Zazai and Gurbaz opened for Afghanistan with the aim of making a big impact, but little did the latter know about the speedy yorker that he had coming on the very first ball that he faced. After getting no runs off the first three deliveries, Hazratullah Zazai managed to take a single off the fourth ball and change the strike.

Afridi’s vicious yorker struck directly on Gurbaz’s left foot and left the wicketkeeper-batter in excruciating pain. It struck his front foot before he even had a chance to get close to putting his bat down in time since it the ball was full, rapid, and swinging in. The umpire lifted his finger to signal out, but Gurbaz was already down and writhing in pain so that wicket was the least of his worries.

Gurbaz, who appeared to be in no way at ease, was being treated by the physios when the play was temporarily paused. After some time, the Afghanistan opener couldn't walk and had to be helped off the field by a substitute fielder. The toe-crushing yorker proved like a ray of hope for Afridi and his Pakistani side, but it did no good to the Afghanistan side.

Teams gear up for Super 12

Afghanistan is set to begin its T20 World Cup Super 12 campaign on October 22 against England at the Perth Stadium and the team would be hoping for Gurbaz’s quick recovery. On the other hand, the Pakistani side would be hoping for similar antics from Shaheen Afridi in their campaign opener against arch-rivals India on October 23.