Shahid Afridi is still collecting wickets in his forties: at the Global T20 Canada 2023, he returned with a neat spell against Vancouver Knights, including a wicket of his former Pakistan teammate Mohammad Rizwan.
Afridi, Pakistan’s top wicket-taking spinner in T20 cricket, finished with figures of 4-0-16-2, although his side, the Toronto Nationals, eventually ended on the losing side.
Brought in as third change, Afridi conceded just six runs from his first two overs as the Knights struggled to break free after the powerplay. Off the fifth ball of his third over, Rizwan tried to attack Afridi, but the floated delivery was only slog-swept to the deep mid-wicket fielder, Farhan Malik. Rizwan, the No.2 ranked T20I batter in the world, departed on a run-a-ball 27, leaving the veteran spinner with a huge smile on his face.
The following over, Afridi had his eyes set on the No.2 ranked ODI batter. Off the last ball of his spell, he caught Rassie van der Dussen off his own bowling, sending the Knights further into trouble. They eventually ended up with 128-7.
The Nationals crumbled dramatically in their reply. Afridi was one of six batters to be dismissed in single figures, as the chase derailed completely by the 16th over, leaving them short by 25 runs.
The Knights advanced to the knockout stages, where they will meet Surrey Jaguars. The Nationals finished fifth on the table.
Watch Shahid Afridi dismiss Mohammad Rizwan below:
Shahid Afridi is still casting magical spells ✨#GT20Canada #GT20Season3 #GlobalT20 #CricketsNorth #TNvVK pic.twitter.com/xffegsCaTM
— GT20 Canada (@GT20Canada) August 3, 2023