×

Shahid Afridi, please do not take the innocence away from cricket

Afridi could have been the all-rounder who could have made the difference to Pakistan’s Test side.

Related articles

Look at the stroke and where the ball finishes. Shahid Afridi will remain the embodiment of innocence in cricket © Getty Images (File Photo)
Look at the stroke and where the ball finishes. Shahid Afridi will remain the embodiment of innocence in cricket © Getty Images (File Photo)

Going into the World Cup, Shahid Afridi’s retirement shocked the world of cricket. Abhishek Mukherjee elaborates on the biggest factor that will go out of the sport with Boom Boom’s exit.

Shahid Afridi has announced his retirement from One-Day Internationals (ODIs). Again. It was probably fourth time on last count (or was it the fifth?), and social media, as expected, has come up with comments — both clichéd and new ones. Some were funny. Some were not. Some were sad. Some were not.

But they all commented, because you cannot ignore the man. You cannot ignore the man who scores a 37-ball hundred, so many teen-ball fifties that you lose track, hit more sixes (often with his right leg in the air) than some people score runs, and even hit a twelve (do a YouTube search with Shahid Afridi 12 if you do not believe me); in the opinion of many he is a better bowler than batsman; and though he is not as athletic as he used to be, he is still a brilliant fielder.

Afridi is about fervour. Afridi is about forgetting the world and celebrating, his legs and arms stretched to form a perfect X; Afridi is about the most passionate of hugs when a teammate pulls off a spectacular run out or a catch; Afridi is about sending down that faster delivery that beats the batsman, the wicket-keeper, and the helmet behind him.

Most importantly, Afridi is about innocence. We want to win. We strategise. We grind it out. We fight mental battles. We go to gyms and take up mental fitness sessions. Afridi is about constant reminder of why we take up sport in the first place. He keeps telling us — by his sheer presence and approach — the most important purpose sports serves: fun.

He may or may not reach the 8,000-run (at a strike rate of 117) and 400-wicket marks. Maybe he does not care. Or maybe he does, because he has gone on air saying that his only regret is the fact that the record for the fastest ODI hundred has been taken away from him. No 34-year old would say something like that to the press — but Afridi is not just another 34-year old. He is Afridi — uncomplicated, uninhibited Afridi who does not care about politically correct statements.

Afridi is no Sachin Tendulkar or Brian Lara, no Allan Donald or Shane Warne. All four have been charismatic in their own ways, but there is no way you can put Afridi in the same league as them. It is not about talent, either. Talk of Roy Fredericks or Sanath Jayasuriya or Lance Klusener or Chris Cairns or Chris Gayle or Adam Gilchrist, and invariably you will speak with awe. Afridi has a better strike rate than all of them. And yet, somehow, the world never stops to be after him.

Is it about the fact that the Pathan was so stout that he never looked a teenager at 17 (and the 17-year old joke stuck)? Is it about his numerous comments, be it on Shoaib Akhtar or Pakistan Women’s Team? Is it about his irresponsible strokeplay which may lead to the frustration of team management and fans alike?

The Afridi enigma is as difficult to fathom as the mystery of his Test career being a mere 27 matches. Given his talent you would back him to open the innings against the new ball in the longest format, not drop him. Why would you drop a batsman who averages 36 (39 as an opener outside Pakistan and UAE) with the bat and 35 with the ball?

Afridi could have been the all-rounder who could have made the difference to Pakistan’s Test side. He could have been their perfect fifth bowler. He could have been the batsman who would change a Test in a session. Instead, he never got to make a comeback, and has decided to bow out of ODIs at 34. To put things into perspective, Saeed Ajmal made his Test debut at 31, is currently 37, and is eyeing a comeback.

Left without the services of Misbah ul Haq and Ajmal, Afridi has done a more than competent job against a New Zealand outfit that looks dangerous with every passing day. He lost the series, but he still has the ability to instil spark in his teammates to give that extra bit. Most importantly, he had been outstanding throughout the series with 205 (average 41, strike rate 164) and eight wickets (average 25, economy 4.03).

But then, Afridi continues to remain Afridi. He has always continued to throw up surprises (as he had done with each of his four retirements and comebacks), and is at it again. He certainly does not look out of form or fitness, is the most likely candidate to take over from Misbah in the 50-over format — but then, he is simply being Afridi. It is as inexplicable as getting out to a slog when your side needs 12 from 24 with three wickets (I made up the numbers).

Do reconsider, Mr Afridi. Cricket will still remain a rich sport, but it will hardly be as fun. Worse, your exit will make viewers of the sport grow up by a decade and concentrate on the stock exchange instead.

(Abhishek Mukherjee is the Chief Editor and Cricket Historian at CricketCountry. He blogs here and can be followed on Twitter here.)

trending this week