Shaheen’s absence ‘big’ for Pakistan, says McCullum

The absence through injury of fast bowler Shaheen Shah Afridi is a “big loss” to Pakistan in the three-match Test series starting this week, England head coach Brendon McCullum said Monday.

The lanky left-arm pacer – Pakistan’s main wicket-taker in all three formats – was left out of the series following a knee injury sustained during the Twenty20 World Cup final in Australia earlier this month.

The 22-year-old also had his appendix removed earlier this month.

England practised for the first time at Rawalpindi stadium on Monday, a day after arriving in Pakistan on their first Test tour since 2005.

The first Test starts on Thursday.

McCullum said Shaheen had made huge progress since he played with and then coached the fast bowler during the first two editions of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) in 2016 and 2017.