Shaheen Shah Afridi faced intense criticism after a tough outing against India in the T20 World Cup Group A clash on Sunday, February 15. The Pakistan pacer failed to complete his full quota of overs and finished with figures of 2-0-31-1 at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo.
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While he managed to claim the wicket of Axar Patel, Afridi looked completely out of rhythm and struggled to find control, making it difficult for Pakistan to maintain momentum at key stages of the innings.
Shaheen was the only pacer used by Pakistan on Sunday as spin dominated the day. The seamer missed 15 runs in his opening over, taking away Pakistan’s momentum after Salman Agha dismissed Abhishek Sharma in the first over.
Ishan Kishan immediately attacked and sent a short delivery over square leg for a six. Bowling to Tilak Varma, Afridi struggled to maintain a consistent line and length.
His back-of-the-cut cutter at 140km/h was met by a solid defensive shot, the fuller delivery waved away without troubling the batsman and the outswinger aimed to induce an edge was read well and went past the fielder for four.
Despite varying pace and swing, his lack of consistency allowed the batsmen to dictate terms, giving India a confident start.
SHAHEEN KEEP FIGHTING
Afridi returned to the final and again found it difficult to contain the batsmen, leaking boundaries and misjudging lengths. Shivam Dube punished the slower ball right in the slot for four and added a mistimed single to long off.
Taking advantage of a misplaced yorker, Rinku Singh smashed a six over mid-wicket and carelessly sliced a slower, wide delivery for another four. Afridi finally found some redemption by taking the wicket of Axar Patel, who was caught at deep mid-wicket.
After the day off, Shaheen faced intense criticism online. Some trolled him as “India’s 12th Man”, while others jokingly called him “Indian Agent” and compared him to Ranveer Singh’s character in Dhurandhar. Many fans felt that he had completely lost his form, describing his performance as lackluster at best.
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Here’s How Fans Trolled Shaheen Shah Afridi
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Issued by:
sabyasachi chowdhury
Published on:
February 15, 2026