Shahid Afridi wants Shadab, Shaheen to ‘rest’ from final New Zealand T20I

KARACHI: Former Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi called for resting the senior duo of all-rounder Shadab Khan and pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi for the upcoming fifth T20I against New Zealand, scheduled to be played on Wednesday in Wellington.

New Zealand, on Sunday, romped to an unassailable 3-1 lead in the ongoing five-match series with a commanding 115-run victory in the fourth T20I, courtesy of opening batter Finn Allen’s blistering 50-run knock, followed by Jacob Duffy’s four-wicket haul.

The hosts had earlier won the first two T20Is in similar fashions, while Pakistan showed a glimpse of brilliance in the third fixture, in which they chased down a daunting 205-run target for the loss of just one wicket and 24 balls to spare, thanks to Hasan Nawaz’s record-breaking century.

With series victory now out of Pakistan’s reach, former all-rounder Afridi urged that the management should give opportunity to youngsters by resting senior players like Shaheen and Shadab for the low-stakes clash.

“For the final game, the players on the bench should be given a chance - with the series lost, Shadab and Shaheen can be rested and replacements given an opportunity,” Shahid Afridi wrote on X, formerly Twitter.

Shadab, who made his return to the national team since the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024, failed to make his comeback memorable as he managed to score just 30 runs in three innings at a below-par average of just 10.

On the bowling front, the all-rounder only managed to take just one wicket in four matches.

Shaheen’s bowling stats are equally underwhelming as the left-arm pacer could pick up two wickets in as many matches at a dismal average of 66.50 and an economy rate of 10.23.