o,Shaheen Shah Afridi is the 19th Green Shirt to take 100 Test wickets. Pakistan’s bowler removed Nishan Madushka in the second over of the first Test match in Galle. The speedster returned to Test cricket on Sunday, opening the bowling for tourists on day one of the first Test at the ICC World Test Championship 2023-25, which kicked off the home team’s action-packed 2023-24 international cricket season. Read out complete details about PAK vs SL down below.
Pak vs SL | Shaheen Shah Afridi takes 100th Test wicket
Shaheen returned to the national team almost a year after damaging his knee in the first Test at Galle last year. He had not played a first-class match since the fourth morning of the first Test at Galle. He landed awkwardly at the boundary, trying to stop the ball. His injuries required slow rehabilitation. He returned internationally at the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup in Australia in October.
But he twisted his knee in the final. He missed the home series against England (Tests) and New Zealand (Tests and ODIs). He returned this year to assist Lahore Qalandars in winning the Pakistan Super League. So, he played in April’s 10-match limited-overs series against New Zealand. Shaheen played for Nottinghamshire to get into the groove before being called up for these two Tests, Pakistan’s debut in the third cycle of the ICC World Test Championship. The seamer said the 100th wicket was exciting.
But the pacer had a lengthy wait. Shaheen’s 99 wickets in 25 matches average 24.86. He has four five-wicket hauls and one match 10-for. During recovery, Shaheen improved his batting. He smashed New Zealand’s Blair Tickner for 22 (three sixes and a four) in Karachi’s last over of the fourth One-Day International to lift Pakistan to 334.
Official Statements
“I am very excited to be making my Test comeback in the country where I was injured,” the seamer told PCB Digital in Hambantota on Thursday before bowling at the two-day warm-up fixture against the hosts at the Mahinda Rajapaksa International Cricket Stadium.
“I was only one wicket away and the new ball was about to be available,” he said while recalling the first Test against Galle 12 months ago.
“Also, I was planning to utilise the new ball to reach that milestone. I got injured before we got the new ball,” he added.
“And I am a bowler first,” he laughed. “But, whenever I will get a chance to make an impact with the bat for my country, I would do so.”
