Pakistan white-ball head coach Gary Kirsten has stated that Shaheen Afridi has bowled “three times more overs than any other fast bowler in the world” in the last 18 months. How true is that statement?
Kirsten was seen commentating during the Champions Cup, a tournament being organised by the Pakistan Cricket Board, where almost all the senior and international players are taking part.
Among various topics, Kirsten spoke about the workload management of Pakistan’s premier pacer Shaheen, who is struggling for rhythm of late after a terrific start to his international career. Shaheen was, most recently, dropped from Pakistan’s XI for the second Bangladesh Test, with injuries also contributing to a drastic drop in his speed.
What did Kirsten say about Shaheen’s bowling?
Social media speculation has led to false reports in some outlets that Shan Masood and Shaheen Afridi were involved in a physical fight during the first Test against Bangladesh.
— Wisden (@WisdenCricket) August 30, 2024
Discover the truth behind these claims here: https://t.co/J1z49i5r6A pic.twitter.com/o0B2nsUoeA
Kirsten, who was commentating on the Panthers-Lions clash on Monday (September 16), which Shaheen was also playing, said: "I saw a scary stat the other day that Shaheen Afridi in the last 18 months has bowled 3 times more overs than any other fast bowler in the world. That’s not good use of your resources. You’re going to wear him down at some point."
Was his statement factually correct?
The information shared by Kirsten of Shaheen bowling thrice as much any other quick in the world is not factually correct. Since the start of January 2023, Shaheen has bowled 3,877 balls, or 646.1 overs, across all professional cricket. The numbers contain his overs in international matches (455.1 overs), domestic T20 cricket (171.1 overs) and local List A cricket (19.5 overs). Shaheen has not played any domestic first-class games in this period.
Pat Cummins, with 592.4 overs in just international cricket, easily surpasses Shaheen if we calculate his workload across all formats since the start of 2023. Cummins has bowled 84 overs in domestic T20s and while he has not sent down a single ball in local first-class or List A matches.
While Shaheen has bowled the most overs among all Pakistan quicks - nearly 200 overs more than second-placed Naseem Shah (266 overs) since January 2023, Kirsten stands corrected on the overall figures the left-armer has bowled.
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