Former Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi spoke of the forthcoming India-Australia Test series and acknowledged premier batsman and skipper, Virat Kohli's, unavailability for the last three games of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.
Afridi said Kohli's return home post the Adelaide Test will definitely be a huge factor in deciding the fate of the contest, but Australia can't take anything for granted, considering India boast of some high-quality players in their line-up.
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Kohli has been granted paternity leave by BCCI as he awaits the birth of his first child in early January, with no chance of returning for the last couple of Tests in times where any tourist arriving down under must quarantine for 14 days.
"No doubt Kohli’s absence will be felt but then, India has some really good players in the line-up who should take this opportunity and make it count," Afridi told PTI.
Afridi, meanwhile, left open a possibility for him to join administration in helping develop Pakistan cricket.
"I haven’t thought too much about it (joining PCB) right now, but yes, why not?" he said. "Someday, I would like to play a more prominent role in Pakistan cricket and give something back to the game. I would do anything to see Pakistan cricket at the top of world cricket in all formats."
In an interview at the sidelines of the inaugural Lanka Premier League (LPL) T20 where he'll be playing for Galle Gladiators, Afridi expressed sympathy for Pakistan's recently-sacked Test captain, Azhar Ali. But did say, Azhar's position was always vulnerable following series losses in Australia and England.
"I don’t want to be too harsh on Azhar because he tried to build a legacy under his captaincy," Afridi said. "But despite his hundred against Sri Lanka and win against both Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, the series loss to Australia and finally the loss to England perhaps didn’t go down too well with the management."
"Babar (Azam, who has taken over across formats) has a good T20 captaincy record too, so let us give him a chance and see if he is capable of handling the pressure of captaining Pakistan."
The 40-year-old also thanked his fans for all the love and support, saying they've kept him going for now two and a half decades.
"It feels good to be loved. Inshallah! I am really fortunate that people have never stopped showing their love to me, no matter whether I have performed or not," said Afridi.
"My game hasn’t changed and the love of people towards me too hasn’t changed. I thankful to the Almighty for that. I am looking forward to play in the Lanka Premier League for the Galle franchise," he added.
