Pakistan left-arm fast bowler Shaheen Shah Afridi has given his fans a reason to rejoice. As announced by the Pakistan Cricket Board, Afridi has completed his rehabilitation from a serious knee injury and will join the Pakistan T20 squad in Australia ahead of the World Cup.
He will travel to Brisbane on October 15 and is in line to play the two warm-up games leading to the World Cup.
A statement from PCB said: "... Shaheen is now available for selection for the 17 and 19 October warm-up matches against England and Afghanistan, respectively, during which his match fitness will be assessed by the team management."
Afridi was obviously thrilled and said: "“I am super excited at the prospects of rejoining the national side for the T20 World Cup and playing my part in our Australia campaign. It has been a difficult period for me to be miles away from the game and the team I love the most, and not be part of some grueling and exciting matches.
“I have been bowling six to eight overs trouble-free for the past 10 days with full run-up and pace. While I have enjoyed bowling and batting in the nets, nothing can replace the feel of the match environment and I can’t wait to be in that setting."
Pakistan will play India in their opening fixture on October 23, at the iconic Melbourne Cricket Ground, in a fixture that is guaranteed to be high stakes. The last time these two teams met in the T20 World Cup was in last year's edition, where Afridi had a ball against the Indian top-order batsman.
The left-arm quick trapped Rohit Sharma (0) and castled KL Rahul (3), before picking up the wicket of Virat Kohli (57) as Pakistan cruised to a 10-wicket victory. Afridi, in fact, won the Man of the Match for his performance that day so he will be raring to go come October 23.
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