
Pakistan lost the T20 World Cup 2022 final to England by five wickets. Being asked to bat first, the Babar Azam-led Men in Green only managed a paltry 137 for 8 in 20 overs with Sam Curran (3 for 12), Adil Rashid and Chris Jordan being among wickets. In reply, England were made to work hard for their runs but Ben Stokes' 49-ball 52 not out took Jos Buttler & Co. past the finish line with five wickets to spare.
During the run-chase, Shaheen Afridi had started off with a bang by removing Alex Hales with a peach of an inswinger. His last two overs were worth of gold for the 2009 winners and Babar introduced him back into the attack in the 16th over, with 41 to defend off 30 balls. After beating Stokes on the first delivery, Shaheen walked off the field due to injury concerns following the catch he took to dismiss Harry Brooks.
Many have termed Shaheen's departure as a turning point of the match. His over was completed by part-time off-spinner Iftikhar Ahmed, who was taken to the cleaners by Stokes. After Pakistan's loss, a fan blasted Shaheen for walking off the field. Nonetheless, he was slammed by Pakistan great Wasim Akram on live tv.
Reading his harsh comments on Shaheen, Akram lost it and said on A Sports, "This guy... ye jo aap ka question hai, aap ne badtameezi ki hai. Agar tumhe tameez nahi hai na, chhote bade ki... apne player ke saath tum badtameezi kar rahe ho. Koi sharam, koi haya nahi hai. (This question of yours, You have been disrespectful. You're speaking rubbish about your own player? No shame, no remorse). Just have a look what he has said about Shaheen Afridi. I am fuming.I wish ki tu mere saamne hota(I wish you were in front of me)."
After the loss, captain Babar said at the post-match presentation, "Congratulations to England, they deserve to be champions and fought well. We felt like home here, got great support at every venue. Thanks for your support. Yes, we lost the first two games but how we came in the last four games was incredible. I just told the boys to play our natural game, but we fell 20 runs short and the boys fought well with the ball. Our bowling is one of the best attacks in the world. Unfortunately Shaheen's injury put us off, but that's part of the game."
Meanwhile, Shaheenhas been advised to take rest and it seems he will be out of action for some time. He is likely to miss the home Tests versus England.