Afghanistan batsman Mohammad Shahzad shattered several cricketing records as he slammed a quickfire 16-ball 74 in the match between Sindhis and Rajputs in the second edition of T10 Cricket League. Not the most closely fought contest, the game saw Rajputs claim a 10-wicket win over Sindhis with 36 balls to spare, making the mockery of 95-run target.
Shahzad’s 74 is also the highest score in the T10 league thus far. He reached his 50 off just 12 balls, breaking Eoin Morgan’s 14-ball 50 record for Kerala Kings last year.
However, soon after entertaining the fans with his swashbuckling knock, the stocky Afghan opener shared his views on the Yo-Yo test – a benchmark to judge the fitness of players nowadays.
"I don't like Yo-Yo test. Some people score 20 in the test still they can't hit a six. I do not care about Yo-Yo test," Shahzad said at the post-match ceremony.
"I don't like Yo-Yo test. Some people score 20 in the test still they can't hit a six. I do not care about Yo-Yo test," Mohammad Shahzad after his 74 off 16 balls innings in T10. #Legend
— Mazher Arshad (@MazherArshad) November 21, 2018
There has been a huge hype surrounding around the Yo-Yo endurance test. The recent instances of players failing the test and subsequently getting snubbed from the team have only proved how serious the major cricket playing nations are about fitness.
Shahzad hit 8 sixes in the innings which is also the maximum for a batsman in the 10-over format of the game. Couple of sixes hit by Shahzad was down to his wrist-power. When asked how does he do that he said, “I was doing some wrist-practice in the gym. Somebody came to me and thought I was doing it to play hockey.”
Shahzad is having a very productive time in UAE. With 344 runs to his name at a strike-rate of 174.61, he topped the batting chart in the recently held Afghanistan Premier League in Sharjah. In September, Shahzad had also scored 124 against India in the tied Asia Cup contest in Dubai.
