'Some Deliveries Were Unplayable': Ex-India Opener Praises Pakistan Ace, Fires Warning Ahead of IND vs PAK Showdown

Former India Opener Aakash Chopra has fired away a potential warning to Team India ahead of upcoming India vs Pakistan classic in the ODI World Cup 2023. When India last faced off against Pakistan in the T20 World Cup last year, Shaheen Afridi had had a forgettable outing as he gave away 34 runs in his 4 overs, as the star pacer was battling an injury.

Ahead of the upcoming World Cup in India, Afridi is firing on all cylinders and could give the Men in Blue plenty of headaches. During a recent T20 Blast match on Friday, Shaheen picked up four wickets in his first over against Birmingham. Praising some of the ‘unplayable’ deliveries from the Pakistan speed gun, Chopra lavished high praise on the youngster.

Taking to Twitter, the former Indian opener lauded the impact of the 23-year-old, as he seemingly sent a subtle warning towards Rohit Sharma’s men before the World Cup showdown.

“Yesterday, Shaheen Afridi took 4 wickets in the first over the innings…some of the deliveries were simply unplayable. Swing at high speed…and the courage to bowl really full,” tweeted Chopra.

Shaheen was representing Nottinghamshire in their clash against Birmingham at Trent Bridge. While the star pacer started his over with five wide balls he then scalped four wickets to leave the opposition in all sorts of trouble in their chase of 169.

Earlier, Tom Moore fired Nottinghamshire to a total of 168 runs with a stunning knock of 73 runs, and with the ball, Afridi reduced Warwickshire to 7/4, picking up the wickets of Birmingham captain and opener Alex Davies, Chris Benjamin, Dan Mousley and Ed Barnard in just his first over.

Eventually, Shaheen’s heroics went in vain as Warwickshire were able to pull away with a thrilling win.

India will be wary of the threat from Shaheen who picked up 3 wickets during the clash between the two arch-rivals in the T20 World Cup 2021 when the Men in Green ended their voodoo of losing World Cup games to their neighbours.

It was Pakistan’s first-ever win over India in the World Cup as Babar Azam’s men pulled away with a stunning 10-wicket win.