All I can say is well said! I remember reading somewhere, I think on SPIN website, about his plan before he goes out to bat, but whenever he arrives at the crease, the chanting by the crowds spur him on, and the plan he has of maybe the first 2,3,4 overs or so of just batting himself in, just disappear and he gets gets tempted by any ball he finds in the slot, to hit it to the boundary.

Great post, I have not seen a better write up about Afridi so far!

What all the Pakistani captains couldn't get Afridi to do (bat with restraint and common sense), he has seemingly finally figured out after almost 13 years! But he chose the perfect stage and moment for this transformation. Here's hoping he continues in this mold for several years to come.

People only see Afridi as a boom boom player yet in the 26 Test matches he played for Pak he averages 37. a pretty decent average for a Test batsman.His last centure 156 only as far back as 2006. A year later he stopped playing Tests.As for his redemntion as a batsman the moment he the dutch fast bowler Nannes-argubaly the fastest bowler in the tournament one felt he was being wasted down the order and needed time at the crease. He got that and rest they say is history.

Well Done Afridi and the Pakistan team.Bravo.
Keep up the good work and bring more laurels to our beloved nation.

Great write-up. I have always felt Afridi has one of the best defence in the Pakistan batting line-up, the only problem has been of him not using it :)

Rightly spoken. In the past couple of months I have had the scary feeling that Afridi was going to be the definition of "what could have been..."
He has all the talent in the world, but a messed up gameplan when batting. But his last few innings have instilled in me some hope that he CAN do any sort of justice to his talent. I just don't hope he loses the plot AGAIN!!!
I pray that he doens't end his playing days an unfullfilled cricketer, because after that he would have to look at himself in the mirror every day and see the man who would be King, but choose to be a pauper... In the end man has nothing to prove to anyone but himself, so go on Shahid, be King...!!!

I dont understand y paki cricketers do not get old...they r playing from last 15 years nd still they are just 28 or 29 look at Abdul Razzaq i was suprised to see tht is just 29 nd it has been ages tht he is been playing for pakistan.....same goes with afridi.....may b players from pakistan like hide their age.....hmmmmmm

Samir,
Thank you first of all, finally someone has persuaded you write something about positive. You're still Militantly negative and your praises are far and few between.
I can't help but notice that if it was Zaheer Khan you would not stop singing his praises but when it comes to Pakistan you're praise all but disappear.. I wonder why???

Too early to make a call on Afridi. Yep. great knocks in the 20/20 semis and finals. But can he carry on.... Ironically not playing in Pakistan or the subcontinent may be the best medicine for him since the crowd chanting will be lesser giving him a chance to keep that cool......

Great Post Michael,

Afridi will always remain an enigma to all his lovers, specially to those who have never come across a pathan. I believe its a bit of false dawn. I dont think (as much as I would love to) that he's gonna change much. He'll keep disappointing us more than he'll thrill us (God knows those thrills more than make up for the disappointments).

Having said that I always felt that Afrid's cricket would have improved had he played more test cricket. A test century or a five wicket haul just means so much more than cameos in 20/20 or one days. He's done both of those feats more than once. Afridi has the ability to leave a legacy same way as Fazal, Hanif, Imran, Javed, Wasim and Waqar left. But for that he has to play test cricket and excel in it. Therefore I was disappointed when I read that he opted out of the test team bound for Sri Lanka. He has a contract with the cricket board, how can he say that im not available for Test cricket? He needs to rethink his stance~!

I do not recall a Pakistan Captain so free of innuendos of match fixing and internal jealousies as Younis. And unlike Imran, who also was above such suspicion, Younis acts as one of the team and not someone superior. Perhaps Afridi's transformation (for the moment anyway!) has to do with Younis Khan's captaincy.

To answer Ricky's accusation- Why would someone tell that he is older when he is actually younger. According to your logic they must have been quite younger than they claimed when they started their cricket. I would think that they should look older since one might suspect that they were not as young as they claimed when they started their career. Food for thought

Don't worry Michael, Shahid will disappoint you again.

Very good post of course.
And for Afridi, well, if he will be given the confidence like he has been given by the captain Younis Khan, he will definitely emerge as a very good batsman.

I guess it's too early to think that Afridi has matured as a batsman. I remember the Chennai Test of 1999 when Afridi got a quite brilliant 141 in the 2nd innings. I remember how Javed Miandad was constantly urging him not to do anything silly. I thought then itself that if Afridi bats in this manner, he could be the next great batsman from Pakistan. Unfortunately, that hasn't been the case!

I also think that Sehwag & Afridi are pretty similar players - both are attacking and precociously talented. But, see their career graphs and you will realize that Sehwag also showed some brain with his brawn! Here's hoping that Afridi doesn't throw the kitchen sink at every ball...

I agree with venkat that it is too early to say, that we will see a change in his batting behaviour. I have always felt that when afridi goes into bat the expections of the public gets the better of him.. I am sure that there has always been pep talks between him and the coach/captain before he goes into bat ,but the min he enters the field everything is erased:)and Mr Shahid Afridi changes into boom boom afridi..

Sorry to burst your bubble fellas. Afridi would not change. He is what he is. As Geoff Boycott often says, Afridi is a dumb cricketer (or words to that effect). He (Afridi) simply cannot think at the crease and only knows to play one way. Yes, his bowling has been steady and his fielding very good, but this is a guy who prior to the last 2 innings, last scored a half century in 2006. The last 2 T20 matches were an aberration for Afridi and I am afraid that he will disappoint. I agree with DPO.. Afridi needs to play more Test Cricket. Question is, can an old dog learn new tricks? Time will tell and I hope that I am wrong, because Afridi is as exciting as any player when he's on.
Mohamed Z. Rahaman (Guyana)

Ricky, yes the Pakistani cricketers might be hiding their ages but the fact is that Pakistan has produced many teenaged superstars like the Muhammed brothers, Miandad, Imran Khan, Saleem Malik, Ejaz Ahmed, Aaqib Javed. Shahid Afridi started his career at 16 and so after 13 years he is still 29! Do the math. India had its own teen titans named Kapil Dev and Tendulker. Tendulker started at 16 and after 20 years he is just 36!

You got to watch Aamer who is 17. Twenty years from now he will be 37 and playing if he does not mess up like Shoaib Akhter and Muhammed Asif.

Well written!!!That's true about Afridi. When he decides to play it safe, bowlers really find it difficult to get him out. Now after his successful run I pray to Allah that Afridi should continue playing this same way instead of getting back to his old ways....The entire world knows Boom Boom Afridi but his new avatar was less known, so he should present himself to the entire world in the new avatar...

Great article wel written and i felt myself a real pakistani reading this article. good job hoever

Afridi is a great allrounder.He has proved it with both bat and bowl in T20 Cup specially in big matches like semi-final and final.He is a great asset for Pakistan team.His performance has shown that he has much more left in him.Now i think he is the best man for both ODI and T20 Captaincy.He is also very unlucky not to get player of the tournament award.He truly deserved it.He was also the main man for Pakistan during last T20.His bowling has improved alot during last 2 years.He is the only man taking wickets consistently for the team.Now he has also shown that he can understand the situation while batting and can handle pressure nicely.Apart from his hitting nature he has shown that he can work the ball for singles when needed and can be trusted.He is also very atheletic in the field making him suitable for every version of game.Now all the eyes will be on him that how will he perform now?Whatever result may be he has placed his name in history as the GREATEST ALLROUND OF ALL TIMES.

@Ricky:

Do Pakistani players look older than their ages ? ......answer is NO. We tend to throw young boys on international scene ..Amir is the most recent one. ....What advantage they can get by hiding their ages ? there is no 60 or 65 years retirement age in cricket.. A cricketer only retires when his performance is not up to the standard . So ur comments dont make any sense to me ....may be u were unable to digest Afridi's success.

Kamran, perhaps you have mistaken me for my colleague, Samir Chopra. I'm much better looking but nowhere near as eloquent!

god bless afridi and pakistan cricket team.

It was great to see Afridi excel here in England, he took over the final and semi-final, he has a presence like all the other game changers do e.g. Flintoff, Gilchrist, Jayasuriya, Yuvraj etc.

The PCB should appoint him the Twenty20 captaincy, I think given his performance and experience, he is the next in line, Kamran Akmal is the only other serious alternative.

I get the feeling that Afridi does not care for his Test legacy, usually the people who are remembered as greats come from great, well-remembered there are very few players who live on beyond playing for mediocre sides ... people like Richard Hadlee or Andy Flower spring to mind.

In T20 or ODI cricket, all that matters is competition victories, winning invites global exposure. If Afridi plays for another 5-8 years then Pakistan will take part in circa 5 global limited overs competitions & if Pakistan win 2 Afridi's legacy will be safe.

Test cricket isn't #1, see C.Gayle and the SL team preferring IPL to touring England.

great article, but lets not get carried away. i am a die hard afridi fan, to the point of obsessiveness perhaps, but even i will state that he has only played about a hand full match winning innings in his career. that is definitely not enough to warrant such hope. test cricket would do him a lot of good, especially these days when he is in form. he has decided to take off from the sri lanka test matches, which i feel is a great shame, and she be hyped up more than it has been. pakistan has barely played any cricket of late, let alone test cricket. and with the australia series coming up in december, this could be the only practice he would get. this attitude is a shame.
having said all that, credit must be given where it is due. afridi played perhaps the most mature and calculated innings of his life, and inshAllah we will see more. no more excuses boom boom!

@Ricky, Mate it seems that you are unware of the fact that many Pakistani crickters start their career at a young age like 17. This T20 was a debut for our two yonger players who are 17 and 19 if I'm not mistaken.
Above all it doesn't really matter what their age is.

Kamran, perhaps you have mistaken me for my colleague, Samir Chopra. I'm much better looking but nowhere near as eloquent!

I agree that this is a great article but I have to respectfully disagree with your opinion. I've know Lala since we were 13 and played Ramadan cricket in Karachi as well as club cricket in the early 90's. He's always been an unconventional cricketer and therein lies the beauty of his game. He's one of those rare beasts who can change the entire complexion of the game, whether its through his batting or bowling. Yes there will be frequent occasions where he will fail but there will also be moments of brilliance that will take your breath away. You're advocating that he become more responsible, dependable and consistent. I say we have 10 other guys who can do that. Let him be the crazy genius that he is and let him be his own man so he can keep on thrilling us. Theres a ton of consistent dependable batsmen in the world game but there is only ONE Shahid Afridi. Let him keep marching to the beat of his own drum.

Calling Afridi a "dumb cricketer" completely misses the point. This guy has scored an ODI century in 37, 44, and 48 balls, who else has as many hundreds in less than 50 balls? He who lives by the sword , dies by the sword and that is what Afridi has done since he was 16. The 20/20 format is perfect for him, and he regained his confidence because of Younis Khan, simple as that, other captains might have given up on him but not Younis. I have no doubt that we will see more of Afridi at 3, don't forget that Pak's batting lineup has been unsettled for years, now there is some semblance of a team, with Akmal going in first. Pakistan has barely played since 2006 and Afridi deserves credit for winning the semi-final and the final almost single handedly. He has obviously found the right formula and the right spot to bat in. Now for Mohd Yousuf to regain his no. 4 spot in the Test side making Pakistan even stronger. Here's to a good series in Sri Lanka. Enjoy the Windies, India!

@Mr. Ricky, Fifteen years from now, you will be saying the same thing about Mohammad Aamir. If you are not hiding your age. Last I check there is no age limit set by ICC. Quick question? Do you know guy name Jaysuria? Does he bother you also????hmmmm

Friends,
Boom Boom was associated with Afridi by all this "Media Crap", natural for anyone who comes on crease if the crowd is asking/expecting for the Ball to be thrown out of the park -------- Afridi is no exception ----
We made him to do so --- give him the hype and then blame him
Let's hope that our BOOM BOOM continues with the MIDAS touch that he has found after so many long years :-)

I think your article is quite good but your summation and predictions for Afridi centre on limited over cricket. Anyone can catch a break in 20/20 as it is not real cricket - one over can and often does dictate or dramatically influence the outcome. This is not to say Afridi isn't a great cricketer: but surely how Pakistan responds now in the test arena is far more important than winning a 120 ball trophy. I wish Pakistan all the best as they deserve accolades for their silverware but they deserve test wins even more. I can't wait to see them tour Aus later this year.

@ Mohsin.
i really dont have any problem with afridi's sucess he has been a hero for me nd i admire pakistani cricket just for d simple reason tht they throw in young talent.actually my article was half written i actually praised d pakistani mgmt only on one thing tht they throw in young talent.u need to have an eye to recognize talent..for amir is d next wasim in making...i actually wanted 2 tell tht paki cricketers specially bowlers increase in their pace as time goes or atleast remain d same pace..but on d other side indians losse pace coz v have bowlers who prefer bowling line nd length rather than goin for raw pace..or for tht matter paki mgmt do not much depend on computers they r people raw talent...but i think same cant b said for their batsmen...i think india has always had a better batting side nd paki a better bowling side.actually afridi himself does not know wht he is going to do d next moment so v commenting on him is very diffcult nd dangerous....

Lets not get carried away by what he did in two 20/20 innings. Dont get me wrong, I admire his skills when he scored that test century at Chennai in 1999 but 3 innings in 10 years is not something to write home about. He needs to show his skills more often specially in the longer format of the game, at least in ODIs because after all 20/20 is "fun cricket".

ya really afridi is my champ ...

I think Afridi hasnt made any excuses and has proved his talent when it matters the most. Only the great players can lay claim to this and he is currently amongst them. Pietersen, Yuvraj and Gayle all currently flatter to decieve. Dont get me wrong, they are good players but are they as great players currently? Afridi has joined the ranks of great current players because his talent has led to his country winning a tournament. Dhoni was a great player because of the way he led his players in the previous w/c. Why should we burden Afridi with further expectations when he has fulfilled his own? Afridi is as Afridi does. Long live Afridi!

Has anyone considerd, that Afridi's "intelligent" batting performances are that only because they are considered in contrast to their counterparts. If he becomes a regular run-machine, I think we would enjoy his exploits that much less. My opinion only, but it is his very unpredictibility that brings us joy (and more often than not - sorrow). What I guess I am trying to say is that Afridi is defined by both poles of his batting performance - they each stand in stark contrast to each other.

I have always thought that his troubles were owed to his mindset at the time he stepped in to bat. Obviously his brain would be ticking at the rate of a light year per nano second and the trick for him always was to slow that process down. Who could do it? May be a doctor with a restful armchair? A captain with his arm around his shoulders? A passel of child hood friends who know his cricket best or a mentor? I can't say what ingredient was missing and where he found it but it appears that he has somehow managed to put the brakes on. Slowed down that brain of his to the level of a common cricketing sense. Which not essentially dictates restrain but a better selection of balls to hit and if they are not forthcoming to wait by rotating strike. Or may be it was just a phase like other phases where he all of sudden showed resolve enough to score all of hundred runs. I’ll believe it once I see him stage a few encores! A word of caution don't call him great because he is not there yet

Sorry Michael...perhaps you may use your psycho hypnosis powers to let Samir know how we feel about his blogs.

Please open the inning keep cool till you see the ball, respect the ball rahter than bowler, play with the merit of ball. You might have come to know the test of success keep it up, we pray for you dear you don't know. Don't waste your time and take time on crease you are the really a person who will score 250 in oneday and 500 in test if keep cool and play the merit of ball. You need to take time in early you are the only one who would hit 12 sixes consecutive and more than 30 sixes in a inning, this is not my dream but realty if you play. You are not only to blame for time waste, you also not handed well you were bound to bat lower the order where you itself did not get the time or no time to settle so it is not your fault. You Imran Nazir and Shoaib Akhater would be real hero of Champions tropy, T20 world cup and World cup for 50 over in coming days. You are the future captain of Team keep patience......and give us time to relax and happiness......

The start that boom boom had to his int career was maybe not the ideal start as we all expected everytime he went out to bat to deliver the same kind of fireworks, looking at his test record which is very impressive for a glamorous slogger as mentioned by a few of our readers I think that he has certainly found his feet in the new format and the credit has to go to Younis Khan as he is a leader with leadership skills that Gordon Brown can surely learn from, lets hope Afrdi keeps on getting advice from his former 20/20 captain to make the Pakistan team not only more dangerous but also consistant. Boom Boom rocks!!!

well wat i see in afridi is that he is big match player who can control himself in pressure game and always in big match one or might be two person performs.the way he bowls and batting and the way he field is stunning simply he is a handy cricter and many of the player are not prfforming in the team so rather kick them out they always see afridi performances anyway no doubt he is best player in pakistan site

Afridi is really 31/32. 29 my ass lol but still has few more years left

The two match winning innings he has played were extraordinary, I hav forgiven him for all thoes times he hz disappointed us wen the game wz in a crucial stage nd we really needed afridi to stay at the crease nd he just pops one ups nd throwz his wicket l. I suppose everybody has forgivin him after the class he showed during the semi final nd the final. Love him for wht he hz done.

Afridi's place in cricketing folklore is secure.