Indian players interacted with Shaheen on Thursday (25th August) and asked him about his injury.
Indian cricket team has been putting in the hard yards in its preparation for the upcoming Asia Cup 2022 in UAE. The Rohit-led side not only is having a good time on the field but they also are enjoying their time off.
They will open their campaign against arch-rivals against Pakistan on Sunday (28th August) in Dubai. The new aggressive approach might once again come in their favour of them as they will look to continue with the same plan against the Babar Azam-led side.
It’s fair to say that they have a slight advantage because premier Pakistan pacer Shaheen Afridi will not be part of the tournament. The left-arm seamer suffered a knee injury and was subsequently ruled out of the Asia Cup.
Read Also: Saqlain Mushtaq confident about Pakistan's pace attack even in the absence of Shaheen Afridi
Both India and Pakistan are preparing in Dubai. The players of both sides shared light moments with each other at the practice session, pictures and videos of which have gone viral on the internet.
On Thursday (25th August) in what was a heartwarming gesture, Indian players were seen meeting Shaheen, who had his knee brace on, and asked about his injury. The likes of Yuzvendra Chahal, Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant, and KL Rahul spared their time to meet the Pakistan pacer.
However, one moment that caught the attention of many was when Pant met the pacer. Shaheen quickly came up with a hilarious comment as he saw the keeper-batter and said: "Yaar main soch raha hu aapki tarah bas batting shuru kar du, ek haath se chhakke lagaau (I'm thinking of becoming a batter like you, start hitting sixes with a single hand).”
Pant also then gave a witty reply and was seen saying that as a fast bowler Shaheen needs to put in extra effort to hit one hand sixes before asking him about his injury.
“Fast bowler ho toh effort lagaana padega sir! Compulsory hai (If you're a fast bowler, you have to put in efforts. It's compulsory).
Here’s the video:
While Shaheen will be a big miss for Pakistan, Pant is expected to play a vital role for his side in the Asia Cup 2022. He has been India’s best batter since last 2 years and being in form, responsibility will be on his shoulders to take his side to a title victory.