Watch: Shaheen Shah Afridi made a blistering start to his stint in the ILT20 for Desert Vipers, castling Jamie Smith’s middle stump in his second over of the competition.
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Having joined up with the Desert Vipers squad following the conclusion of Pakistan’s T20I series against New Zealand on Sunday (January 21), Afridi wasted no time in finding his feet in the competition. He bowled five dots in his opening over to Smith, who was opening with fellow English top-order batter James Vince.
After Mohammad Amir removed Vince in his first over of the game, Afridi came back on to Smith for his second. He sent an outswinger down first up before conceding a wide from his second. His third, however, was a beauty.
It was pitched on a length and angled across the right-handed Smith, who took a huge swipe across the line at the ball. He missed completely, with the ball zoned in on the stumps and crashing straight into middle.
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Afridi unfurled his trademark celebration with his arms outstretched, before his teammates reached him to congratulate him. He went on to return figures of 3-22 from his four overs, also dismissing Jordan Cox and Chris Jordan, restricting the Giants to 160-6. Desert Vipers chased down their target comfortably with six balls to spare.
Watch: Shaheen Shah Afridi castles Jamie Smith’s middle stump below
Castled 💥
Shaheen Afridi makes a grand entry in #DPWorldILT20onZee 🦅 #GGvDV | #KoiKasarNahiChhodenge | @TheDesertVipers pic.twitter.com/mXhIsEvapl
— Zee Cricket (@ilt20onzee) January 24, 2024
