The hoax called Boom-Boom

The sense of resignation on his face was quite evident, slumped on the chair in his dugout as the chase against Australia had finally come to an embarrassing end. The long kamikaze career of the man fondly referred to as Mr. Boom-Boom was finally drawing to an end; at least for now.

As has been the case for his entire career, the fans go haywire as soon as they see Shahid Afridi walking to the crease. And the familiar chant of “Boom Boom” cutting across all sections of cricketing fans soon follows. As if Afridi is paying homage to his fans in the stadium, he swings his bat at the delivery and convincingly clears the boundary.

The crowd goes wild. They all expect a show when this man is on the crease. But what follows soon after the six is the standard script of Afridi that we have become accustomed to. An arrogant wood slayer who stops heaving at nothing, irrespective of the demands of the situation his team is facing.

Not to everyone’s surprise, he goes onto his backfoot and attempts to heave the ball on the leg side, desperately trying to clear the fence but is caught. As he walks back to his dugout there is an angry swish of his bat, probably an admission of a missed opportunity at the fag end of his career that honestly speaking, has been on the wane for some time now.

Having retired from Test Cricket in 2010 and from one-day internationals in 2015, Shahid Afridi is the leading wicket taker in T20 internationals for Pakistan with 97 wickets and is Pakistan’s fourth highest run scorer with 1,405. Notably, he has scored more sixes than any other player in the history of one-day international with his tally count at 476, a record which he will be arguably very proud of.

He was also the proud owner of the record for the fastest century in ODI cricket history, taking only 37 balls to complete his century, a record which was eventually smashed by AB de Villiers in 31 deliveries. Notwithstanding the above records, the question which is poignantly raised at this juncture is what kind of legacy does Shahid Afridi leave behind him if and so when he conclusively decides to retire?

The start of Boom-Boom

Rewind to 4th October 1996, in his second ODI and in his first innings, Sahibzada Mohammad Shahid Khan Afridi, aged 16 years and 217 days old, marches in with a bat in hand, chewing his gum and demolishes the reigning world champions for the fastest ever 100 in ODI cricket. His century coming in only 37 balls.

The world takes note of this exceptionally talented and flamboyant batsman whose scoring sequence at the end of his innings read as 0-6-1-0-4-0-0-6-0-0-6-6-1-1-6-6-2-6-4-4-0-0-6-6-1-4-1-1-0-4-1-6-0-6-0-2-4-1-0-0, leave alone on debut. The above is followed by one of the classiest spells of fast leg spin against England where Shahid Afridi bullies England with ball and bat to give Pakistan a series-levelling win in Lahore with figures of 5 for 40.

The cricketing fraternity takes further note that Afridi is an all-rounder and not a batman per se. Noteworthy is the fact that his test career was always was as unpredictable as they came. Consistent failure in test matches set the tone for a stop-start Test career that was a whirl of unpredictable highs and inevitable lows.

Geoff Boycott, chronicling Afridi’s decline, once remarked, “His batting is so bad that it is embarrassing to watch him bat these days. He can't think, he can't judge the length, he is just a swiper of the ball, he bats like a tail-ender and a bad one at that.”

Currently, Lala’s T20 bowling skills are also on the decline, with batsmen more comfortably dispatching his deliveries to the boundaries. Should the Pakistan Cricket Board unload this excessive baggage and, in turn, absorb him into the administration? Should the Board accept one of his decisions to retire?

Unfortunately, the last time Afridi decided to retire, the Board allowed him to come back, only to witness him turn into a huge liability for the team or which can be better summed up as a walking embodiment of the adage that converts one’s legacy into a joke.

Afridi’s relationship with retirements

Afridi’s tryst with retirements is not a new found hobby. On 12th April 2006, Shahid Afridi announced his retirement from Test Match cricket, citing that he wanted to solely concentrate on the ODI format and prepare for the 2007 World Cup. As people were coming to terms with his retirement, he reversed his decision to retire on 27th April 2006 after being strongly persuaded by the PCB chairman.

But as fortune would have it, his career in test match cricket did not last long as he consistently failed to make any substantial contribution to the Test side, and therefore, ultimately retired from Test cricket with his stats reading as five 100’s and eight 50’s in 27 test matches at an average of 36.51.

Following his test retirement in 2006, he announced his ODI retirement in May 2011 after being beaten by arch-rivals India in the World Cup. His decision to retire was also motivated by his sacking by the PCB as he was quick to point out that he had been conspired against.

A change in the PCB administration in October 2011 saw Afridi take a U-turn again on his retirement and his love affair with retirements continued. The much-discussed love affair surfaced yet again in 2012 when Afridi struggled to do well in a series against Sri Lanka with both bat and ball and contemplated to retire in order to may way for youngsters in the team for the 2015 World Cup.

Unfortunately for the youngsters, Lala played for a few more months beyond the 2015 World Cup before deciding to draw his ODI career to an end. His ODI record at a first glance which reads as 8064 runs in 398 ODI’s with six 100’s and thirty-nine 50’s with an average of 23.57 may come across as impressive.

But don’t be fooled by it. Afridi’s average in ODI’s is way below par in comparison to other players who have played equal or more number of ODI’s. Moreover, he has faced the lowest number of deliveries in ODI’s for the number of ODI’s he has played, a record bettered only by the likes of Muttiah Muralitharan and Wasim Akram in both the above-mentioned categories.

The controversial Afridi

Afiridi seen biting the ball during the final overs

Boom-Boom’s relationships with controversies haven’t been camera shy either. On November 21, 2005, during a test match in Faisalabad against England, he was caught blatantly and purposefully scuffing up the pitch in an attempt to help his side’s bowlers. A three-match ban and a warning ensued henceforth.

Moreover, on November 21st, 2007 he was handed a two-match ban for striking a spectator in Durban after being dismissed in the ODI. His ban invariably meant he had to miss two crucial games for Pakistan in the 2007 World Cup, which eventually ended up being a forgetful World Cup for Pakistan as they bowed out from the group stages.

In one bizarre incident on 31st January 2010, he was seen biting into the ball in full view of the cameras in the closing stages of the Final ODI during a forgetful tour of Australia. Subsequently, as a penalty, he was handed a six-month-long probation along with a fine of 3 million rupees.

Barring his on-field behaviour, his off-field behaviour in the recent days has been nothing but that of a politician. Lala dived into controversy after his team’s defeat against India in the 2011 World Cup by saying that Indians will never have hearts like Muslims and Pakistanis. Probably the biggest controversy that he started was when he stated that he had seen Sachin trembling while facing Shoaib Akhtar.

Afridi’s legacy a hoax?

After a career spanning through 398 ODI’s , 27 tests and 100-odd T20I’s, Shahid Afridi and his staunch fan following must be relishing in the legacy that he has left behind in all formats of the game. But to everyone’s disappointment, his legacy is nothing but a hoax. A mirage shrouded in the adoration and love that he has received from the PCB and his fans.

Firstly, Afridi was never a great leader. His record as a captain is a mixed one as well. In recent times, in crucial games against India and New Zealand in the ongoing T20 World Cup, Afridi batted up the order, imitating an invitee in a marriage function who arrives before the food is ready and bowled late in the match imitating an invitee who lingers after everyone leaves the marriage function.

Secondly, he always seems to be at the forefront of team politics. Be it the recent rumours that his team has conspired against him or his differences with Umar Akmal wherein he only used to communicate to Umar Akmal through Imran Khan.

Thirdly, being attached to the game for such a long period of time, he is nothing in comparison of being an ambassador of the game. Be it the ball biting incident or his remarks that Pakistani Women are great cooks when asked about the Pakistan Cricket Women’s team. He has, on a number of occasions, let his team as well as his nation down.

Fourthly, his records fail to answer the question as to whether he was actually a batsman who could bowl fast leg spin, an all-rounder or a bowler who could bat a bit?

Ageing Captain Lala has been under much fire recently for his comments on Kashmir, for his declining form and the lack of tactical know-how. His darting leg spin has looked unthreatening in recent times. And as Javed Miandad rightfully remarked on Afridi on Pakistan’s Aaj TV Channel, “The man who is unpredictable and no one knows how he will perform is playing as a team captain.”

Echoing Miandad’s statements, many ex-Pakistan cricketers have criticised Afridi’s lack of tactical nous. With so much controversy and media pressure, one can only hope that Afridi finally decides to draw a curtain to his career; unless he decides to take a U-turn this time too.