“Best is yet to come” – Shaheen Afridi warns Team India ahead of Indo-Pak Asia Cup 2023’s Super-4 clash

Shaheen Afridi, who recently scalped four wickets against Team India, has sent a warning to the Men in Blue ahead of the Super-4 Asia Cup 2023 showdown. The match is scheduled to be played at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo on Sunday, September 10. The upcoming fixture also has a reserve day due to rain forecast.

With the World Cup coming up next month, Afridi believes that he is yet to deliver his best. The bold statement comes despite the left-arm pacer finishing with figures of 4/35, including prized wickets of India captain Rohit Sharma and senior batter Virat Kohli cheaply in the previous encounter.

Afridi’s exploits with the ball saw the Men in Blue get bundled out for 266 in 48.5 overs before rain played spoilsport.

Shaheen Afridi, who has scalped seven wickets in the Asia Cup so far, told AFP:

“Every match against India is special and people watch this a lot. I used to wait for this match as a fan before I played under-16 cricket. I can’t say this has been my best spell so far. This is just the start and there will be many more, so the best is yet to come.”

He continued:

“If you play all the three formats at such a young age for Pakistan and handle the new ball, people expect you to perform like that.”

Afridi further credited his bowling partners Haris Rauf and Naseem Shah for stepping up in the Asia Cup. The duo has scalped 23 wickets in the Asia Cup so far. He said:

“We know our roles with the new and old ball. Haris is quicker than us and impacts with his pace. Naseem and I try to get early breakthroughs. Communication is good between us and that’s our success.”

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“All the foreign players who have played in the IPL, we had discussions with them” – Shaheen Afridi on Indo-Pak World Cup clash

Shaheen Afridi further explained how he is preparing for the World Cup by trying to gain information from overseas players who participate in the Indian Premier League. He said:

“All the foreign players who have played in the IPL, we had discussions with them. Spinners will get more help, maybe. We will hit good lengths. Our team performance is going well as the number one (ODI) team. We have prepared well."

The highly-anticipated World Cup game between India and Pakistan will be played at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on October 14.