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Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis, two former fast bowlers
for Pakistan, were harshly critical of the decision to rest Shaheen Shah Afridi
for the third Test at the SCG.
Wasim claimed the decision “had nothing to do
with the management” and was “solely [Shaheen’s] decision”,
warning players more broadly they had to decide “if you want to be a great
of the game or do you want to be a millionaire” when it came to deciding
which format to prioritise.
“Straight after this there are five T20s in New
Zealand, and Shaheen’s the captain,” Wasim said on Fox Cricket. “But
T20 cricket, who cares? I understand, it’s there for entertainment and it’s
there for financial gain for cricket boards, for players, but cricketers should
know that Test cricket is the ultimate.
“If we talk about what happened 20 years ago in
this Test in Sydney, nobody knows what happened last night in T20. That’s the
difference. These guys have to understand and learn, if you want to be a great
of the game or do you want to be a millionaire. You can become both but with a
little more sense.”
Waqar was similarly surprised, saying Afridi’s absence
“made me laugh”.
“That’s a real shocker for me because I was
expecting him to be a part of this Test match because he looked good in the
previous match. He started feeling like the old Shaheen Afridi and started to
swing the ball and the pace was getting better.”
Pakistan expressed concern over Afridi’s workload
throughout the first two Tests. With no lead spinner in the first two Test
matches, he headed a young, thin fast bowling lineup that bowled four balls shy
of 100 overs, about thirty more than Nathan Lyon, the second busiest bowler in
the series.
As he took on more responsibilities in white-ball
cricket, his workload over a longer time span has also become a problem. He
signed a three-year contract with the ILT20 last year and is the captain of the
Lahore Qalandars in the Pakistan Super League.