PCB should reduce Shaheen Afridi and Babar Azam's workload: Sikandar Bakht

Shaheen Shah Afridi will miss Asia Cup 2022 due to a knee injury (PC:Twitter)

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) is facing a lot of criticism for its mismanagement of Shaheen Shah Afridi. Afridi was ruled out of the upcoming Asia Cup 2022 after being unable to recover from a knee injury that the lanky bowler suffered during the Sri Lankan tour.

Shaheen is replaced by Mohammad Hasnain, who is making a return to the national setup after undergoing a correction in his bowling action. Afridi will also miss home series against England, and will be up against time to be fit for the upcoming ICC T20I World Cup in October. 

This incident has sparked a debate in Pakistan's cricketing circles about managing the workload of star players like Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan, and Afridi.

Former Pakistan international Sikandar Bakht has advised the PCB to adopt a more proactive rotation policy and strengthen the bench more often.

Speaking to GeoNews, Bakht said,

"Shaheen is a naturally gifted player and PCB should have handled him with utmost care. Babar should also rest, he scored 222 runs alone in the series. He should sit down with the team management and opt to sit out of some games."

Shaheen Afridi's workload since debut 

Since making his debut for Pakistan in 2017, Afridi has played 97 matches and bowled 1,225 overs across formats.  He has 99 wickets in Tests, 62 in ODIs and 47 in T20Is.

The 22-year-old played in the Pakistan Super League (PSL), County Championship, and National Cup as well.

He has bowled the second highest number of international overs since 2020, behind Tim Southee (836.3) and just ahead of Mehidy Miraz (800), and Jasprit Bumrah (780.3).

Also Read: Azam outlines opportunity for youngsters in Afridi's absence

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