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Gary Kirsten concerned over ‘alarming’ workload of Shaheen, Naseem

Pakistan’s white-ball head coach Gary Kirsten on Monday, acknowledged that their pace duo of Shaheen Shah Afridi and Naseem Shah are under immense workload.

Kirsten, while commentating on Monday’s Champions One-Day Cup, shared an alarming insight regarding ace pacer Afridi, who according to him, bowled three times more than any other pacer in the world.

“Fast bowlers are always under immense pressure to deliver and win games. When we look at our key resources, Shaheen Afridi and Naseem Shah have carried the bulk of the workload for Pakistan across all formats,” said Gary Kirsten.

“Shaheen has bowled three times more overs than any other fast bowler in the world over the last 18 months. That’s alarming—you’re bound to wear him down eventually,” he added.

Notably, Shaheen Afridi and Naseem Shah are one of the few players, who are regular parts of the Pakistan team across formats.

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Both pacers have sustained severe injuries in the past, resulting in them missing out on major tournaments like ACC Men’s Asia Cup 2022 and ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023.

Remember, Shaheen sustained a knee injury amid Pakistan’s first Test of the two-match series against Sri Lanka in 2022, which resulted in him missing the second match of the series and the first two ODIs against the Netherlands.

The left-arm pacer then ruled out of the Asia Cup as his injury worsened.

On the other hand, Naseem Shah sustained an injury to his right shoulder in the blockbuster Asia Cup 2023 clash between arch-rivals Pakistan and India.

The right-arm pacer walked off the field in the 46th over of India’s innings and was subsequently ruled out of the tournament remainder.

Naseem sustained a much worse injury to his right shoulder than was suspected by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and the severity of the injury was such that the young pacer got ruled out of the World Cup.