Shahid Afridi: Top 5 spells in limited-overs cricket

Shahid Afridi, a name that more commonly reminds one of explosive batting, wily spin and overall aggressive game play. Afridi, who recently retired from T20I cricket, has his records speaking volumes about his bowling. He retired as the highest wicket-taker in T20 Internationals (T20Is) with 98 wickets, even after not playing for almost one year. The hero of Pakistan’s ICC World T20 win in 2009 in England will go down in history as one of the best all-rounders ever produced by the country. As the swashbuckling cricketer turns 37, here are top five spells that left his opponents rattled and his fans amazed:

A 7-for in an ODI: Under the captaincy of Misbah-ul-Haq, Pakistan travelled to West Indies  in 2013 for a five-match ODI series. It was the first match and hence very crucial for both the sides as both were eager to take the lead. Batting first at the Providence stadium, Guyana, Pakistan were reduced to 21 for 3 within 8 overs, courtesy Jason Holder’s terrific spell. Misbah came to the rescue, scoring a crucial 52 while Afridi emerged as the star of the innings with a 55-ball 76, hitting 6 fours and 5 sixes in the process. Pakistan’s innings came to an end with 224 for 9 on the board and West Indies sniffed an easy victory. Shahid Afridi quits: Cricket’s Peter Pan lays his bat down

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Just when everyone thought they had seen the best of Afridi in the match, the all-rounder bowled the best spell of his career to take  a 7-for. After Chris Gayle threw away his wicket and the rest of the top three were removed by Mohammad Irfan, Afridi cleared the rest, giving away only 12 runs in his 9 overs. The hosts were bundled out for 98 and Pakistan won the match by 126 runs. This match is regarded as one of Afridi’s best performances and he was rightly adjudged the Man of the Match. Pakistan went on to win the series 3-1.

Breaking Kapil Dev’s record: Under Afridi’s captaincy, Pakistan emerged as one of the strongest contender for the World Cup in 2011. In the group stage match against Kenya, Afridi pulled off a record breaking spell, registering the best figures by any captain in a World Cup match. Pakistan put up a humongous target of 318 for Kenya to chase. Umar Gul provided Pakistan with the first two wickets, first affecting a brilliant run out and then following it up with another wicket and Afridi did the rest of the work. He ran through the middle-order and removed three of them for single-digit scores. He also dismissed set Collins Obuya for 47 and Pakistan won the match by 205 runs. Afridi bowled 3 maidens out his 9 overs and gave away only 16 runs to take 5 wickets. ICC World T20 2016: Romance of watching Shahid Afridi bat

The spell that won Pakistan the series: England were in Pakistan playing a full tour that included three Tests and five ODIs. Michael Vaughan’s England had already lost the Test series by 0-2 to Pakistan and it was time for Marcus Trescothick to try for some limited-overs glory. England started had off well, winning the first ODI but Pakistan made a strong comeback, winning the second and third of the series. It meant the fourth match was must-win for the visitors. Batting first at Rawalpindi in the fourth ODI, Pakistan failed miserably and it was skipper Inzamam-ul-Haq’s unbeaten 81 that helped the hosts to save their face.

Afridi’s 34 was the second-highest individual score in Pakistan’s innings and the target of 211 did not look like a big challenge for England. However, Naved-ul-Hasan did not let the top bat comfortably and England were reduced to 25 for 3 within 7 overs. Andrew Flintoff emerged as England’s ray of hope as he kept batting while wickets kept falling at the other end. Inzamam introduced Afridi in the 23rd over and the first thing he did was to remove Flintoff for 40 and England were 99 for 6. In his next 3 overs he removed Geraint Jones and Liam Plunkett and Pakistan went on to win the low-scorer by 13 runs. Pakistan won the series as well. Shahid Afridi and 7 other famous cricketers who came out of retirement

7 runs, 5 wickets: Among Afridi’s most recent destructions is his brilliant 5-wicket-haul in the Pakistan Super League (PSL) 2016. The Peshawar Zalmi star, playing against Quetta Gladiators, emerged as the hero as he removed 5 of his opponents’ batsmen giving away just 7 runs with a terrific economy of 1.75 in T20 cricket. From 41 for 2, Afridi’s strikes reduced the Gladiators to 65 for 8 and helped restrict them at a par score of 129 which the Zalmi top-order chased down with ease. Pakistan’s All-Time ODI XI

A 3-for in South Africa: One of Pakistan’s most successful overseas hunting in the last five years is their tour to South Africa late in 2013. The tour started with a couple of T20Is, of which South Africa had won the first. It was a do-or-die for Pakistan to save the series. Batting first at Centurion on November 22, Pakistan put up a competitive 176 for 4 in their 20 overs with Umar Akmal and Mohammad Hafeez scoring 64 and 63 respectively.

However, the total looked small in front of the heavy South Africa top-order. With solid batting from Hashim Amla and Quinton de Kock, the hosts were off to a confident start, bringing up their 50 without any loss. Afridi provided Pakistan with their first breakthrough, removing de Kock for 28. He then picked up the crucial wickets of Faf du Plessis and AB de Villiers, ending with 3 for 28. However, credit goes to him for the timely breakthroughs that helped Pakistan win the match by 6 runs later.