New Zealand player names Shahid Afridi, Abdul Razzaq as idols

New Zealand batter Mark Chapman opened about his admiration for two Pakistan’s star cricketers; Shahid Afridi and Abdul Razzaq.

Speaking to a local sports channel, the 30-year-old shed light over his childhood ideal cricketers.

“Growing up, I idolized Shahid Afridi because you can’t look past him in the pecking order. Everyone sort of held their breath when he walked out to bat,” Chapman said.

Afridi was a game changer for the Green Shirts be it with bowling or batting.

Acting as a crucial player in several of Pakistan’s most memorable victories, notably the ICC T20 World Cup of 2009, where he made 54 runs off 40 balls after smashing two sixes and two fours, securing the championship for his team.

Continuing with his conversation, the left-handed batter added the former player, Abdul Razzaq, in his childhood role-models.

“But I liked how Abdul Razzaq used to bat during his peak years. I really loved his batting,” he added.

Alongside Afridi, the right-handed batter left a lasting impression in the cricketing world with his commendable abilities.

In addition, after praising the former legends, Chapman couldn’t resist from commenting on the white-ball captain Babar Azam’s expertise and insights following his interaction with the Pakistan's captain.

“You know he is a wealth of knowledge he is up there in the world with some of the best batters so any opportunity you get to sit next to a guy like that for an hour. You’d be silly not to pick his brains,” Chapman said.

He added a period to his statement after saying that: “Me and Fakhar Zaman have had breakfast a couple of times in the last series. I’ve also sat with Babar on the plane a couple of times, and we just talk about batting.”

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