• Home
  • Match Hub
  • Average Bowling Speed Of 127 Why Shaheen Afridis Dip In Pace Is Worrying Sign For Pak

Average bowling speed of 127! Why Shaheen Afridi's dip in pace is worrying sign for PAK

Anurag Dasgupta

Shaheen witnessed drop in pace [Source: AFP Photo] Shaheen witnessed drop in pace [Source: AFP Photo]

Shaheen Afridi is Pakistan’s premium fast bowler, and over the years, the wily pacer has done well for his nation. He is Pakistan’s only three-format bowler, and was recently announced as the new ODI skipper of the team, replacing Mohammad Rizwan. While his achievements are magnificent, the first T20I game against South Africa exposed one of his glaring weaknesses.

In the first T20I against the visitors, Shaheen conceded 21 runs in his first two overs, but the worrying part was not his inability to contain runs, but his bowling speed had almost diminished. He looked more like a spin bowler and delivered cutters in his first two overs.

Shaheen Afridi's dip in bowling speed

Shaheen Afridi opened the bowling for Pakistan, and right from the first ball, he clearly lacked the zip. 130, 135, 134, 120, 135, and 133 km/h were his speeds in the first over as the Proteas openers negated him easily. In the second over, the speedometer read 129.6, 108, 132, 112.7, 135.3, 120.9.

Interestingly, in the first two overs, Shaheen’s highest speed was 135.3, and the average speed was 127. For a pacer who started his career bowling at well over 145 km/h, this is a downgrade that he needs to address.

Why the speed drop is a danger sign for Pakistan

As mentioned, Shaheen is Pakistan’s only all-format bowler, and he was recently made the ODI skipper, which means there is an added responsibility to deliver the goods. The left-arm seamer was known for his ability to swing the ball at a good pace, but now that his pace is getting dropped, the batters tend to find it easy to play him along the ground or hit him over.

At this rate, the premium pace bowler will witness a further dip in bowling speed, and it also has to do with his workload management. The ODI captain gets picked in every game, and this affects his bowling as he hardly gets proper rest to take care of his body.

This was the reason why he bowled at an average speed of 127, and the Proteas openers toyed with him for fun.