Shaheen Afridi Ignores Virat Kohli As Pakistan Seamer Picks His Toughest Opponent

Shaheen snubs Kohli [Source: AFP Photo]

Every player in the world loves to play against a particular opposition, and for the Indian great Virat Kohli, it was Pakistan that brought the best out of him as a batter. Kohli relished having a battle against the Men in Green and the former India skipper boasted stellar record against them across formats.

Amla the 'toughest' as Kohli gets snubbed

Every Pakistan bowler fears Kohli, but Shaheen Afridi has a different thought process. In a podcast - Bricks to Riches, Shaheen was asked to name the toughest batter he has bowled against, and while the obvious answer would have been the Indian great, the Pakistan seamer took a different route.

He went ahead and picked South African legend, Hashim Amla as the toughest batter to bowl to, an answer which definitely raised some eyebrows.

“Hashim Amla,” he replied. “I’ve played test matches and ODIs against him, and he’s a tough competitor. I have also played a match against him in the Vitality Blast— a Twenty20 cricket tournament in England. I felt that he’s a very good batsman, and he is very good at what he does,” he added.

When the host asked him about Virat Kohli, Shaheen stated that the Indian cricketer is a different player altogether, but Amla was an ‘absolute toughest’.

“Virat Kohli is a different player, but Hashim bhai [brother], he’s the toughest. Absolute toughest,” he remarked.

The Amla vs Shaheen international battle

At the international level, Amla and Shaheen Afridi have had quite a few interesting battles. In red-ball cricket, Amla has scored 31 runs in 63 deliveries vs Shaheen, and the Pakistan pacer has failed to dismiss him even once.

In ODIs though, Shaheen has managed to knock him twice, while Amla has added 40 runs in 41 balls with a strike rate of 97.6.

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