Shoaib predicts Afghanistan in CT semis, blasts ICC for restrictions on fast bowlers

Mohammad Abdullah, Senior Sports Reporter

Former Pakistan pace sensation Shoaib Akhtar predicted Afghanistan as one of the semifinalists in the upcoming Champions Trophy and batted for granting more freedom to the fast bowlers.Shoiab, who is the brand ambassador for the DP World ILT20 and a commentator at the tournament, spoke at length about the sensitive topics, which are usually ducked diplomatically by the others.

“I want to see Afghanistan in the semi-finals. They have a bunch of very talented cricketers. My heart goes out for Afghanistan, as I love that country. The reason is the intent that they show for the game.

“The way they play cricket and the amount of joy that they bring to the game is immense. I want them to beat Australia to avenge their loss at the World Cup semi-finals. They are the best. They have  very good players like Fazalhaq Farooqi, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Gulbadin Naib and Rashid Khan to name a few.

“If they can bring some patience in their batting and bowling, I think that they can qualify for the semis. Farooqi is the find of the decade for Afghanistan.

“The number of matches that he has played and the amount of battering has gone through, he has evolved as a mature cricketer. He bowls wicket to wicket, can reverse swing the new ball, bowls Yorkers in the death over these shows that he has become very matured as a fast bowler,” said Shoaib.

“I want Pakistan to beat India on Feb.23, even if India beat Pakistan or vice versa, but I want to play one more match at least either in the semis or final.

“I want these teams in the semis from the sub-continent. I reckon Afghanistan is also a subcontinent team. We should be wary of Bangladesh too, they are not an easy team,” he added while speaking on the sideline of the first qualifier between Desert Vipers and Dubai Capitals in Dubai.

Shoaib, who holds the record of bowling the fastest delivery in the history of cricket across all the formats, urged the fast bowlers to bring aggression in their bowling.

“Bowling fast is always a great idea. Once you are born as a fast bowler, you should bowl as a rapid fast bowler. You should not slow down. You should mix and match your bouncers and Yorkers,” he advised the young fast bowlers.

“I was going through my stats and I found out I have bowled 23000 deliveries, out of which 10000 were bouncers. That shows how much I lived bowling bouncers.“You should stare at the batsman and keep him on the back foot always. Bowling in the good area and good length, that is what matters. That will get you wickets.”

Shoaib also blasted the International Cricket Council (ICC) for imposing so many restrictions on the fast bowlers.“You cannot blame the fast bowlers now-a-days as they are born in the era of T20 cricket where there is variation not aggression.

“Back in the old days, you had only Test matches and ODIs. You used not to mingle around with the players of the other team as often as they do now in the time of franchise cricket.“

"The rivalry has gone down. The aggression is not there. I want to see the relaxed rules for the fast bowlers from ICC. They should allow three bouncers in an over. I will see then how many people can go unhurt."

“It is always at the back of the batsman’s mind that he can hurt me. When it hits, it hurts. That fear tactic should always be there. I don’t know which Einstein came up with the idea of five fielders in the circle.

“I want to know that Einstein, who applied this formula of two new balls and two bouncers in an over. There is nothing for the fast bowlers. How can they be aggressive when there is nothing for the fast bowlers,” he asked.

“I think ICC should relax the rules, no two new balls, no free-hit  and allow the bowlers to bowl three bouncers in an over. That will bring some sledging and some aggression. Somebody will get hurt, someone will fight. There will be a bit of pushing around each other that will make the game interesting. That is what the audience wants. They don’t want sixes and fours.

“There was so much aggression that Javed Miandad tried to hit Dennis Lille with the bat. I am not saying it should go to that level but there should be some body contact. You see all the international sports like ice-hockey, football and even cyclists bump into each other,” he stressed.

Shoaib also backed the Sharjah Warriorz to bag the ILT20 title. Impressed by their late surge in the league, with a sensational eight-wicket win against defending champions MI Emirates Shoaib said, “I think my heart goes for Sharjah Warriorz because they have started off very late when it comes to playing the tournament well. They gained the momentum to be in the place where they are today.”

“While I don’t want to seem biased and wish to see all four teams play top quality cricket, I think it will be really good to see Sharjah go out there to claim the title,” he concluded.