Watching Shahid Afridi bat could be exciting,but that happened very rarely.More often than not,it was very frustrating,as he got out too quickly,playing wild slogs.
Interestingly,he was primarily a bowler,who is known more for his batting,as he could hit big sixes.Technically,he wasn’t a proper batsman,but one who flourished in the age of T 20 cricket.
His entry into international cricket was sensational.Straightaway,he smashed the quickest hundred in One Day International cricket.The record was subsequently broken,but there is little in the book about that career defining innings.
One major achievement,however,was playing a key role in Pakistan’s 2009,T 20 World Cup victory.He also famously snatched a last over victory against India,in the 2014 Asia Cup,by hitting two sixes in the last over.One of those was a mishit,however,which luckily went for six !
The book is mostly like Afridi’s batting,rather erratic and disappointing,for the most part.His choice of ghost writer doesn’t help,Wajahat Khan is a rather pompous and irritating TV anchor,and not really a writer.
The book is poorly written,but because of this,also provides moments when it becomes rather funny.It lacks any chronological order,and a proper structure.The chapters end abruptly.
Afridi is not happy with many Pakistani cricketers,particularly Javed Miandad,Mohammad Yousuf and Waqar Younis.Afridi uses some choice words for Indian cricketer,Gautam Gambir.
Afridi once actually bit a ball during a match in Australia and admits in the book that it was a stupid thing to do.
It was surprising to see a good part of the book devoted to Afridi’s political views,although those views could just as easily be those of his co-author,Wajahat Khan.
At times,the book feels like a lecture on Pakistani politics.He isn’t too happy with Asif Zardari and Imran Khan,and claims that all the major parties tried to get him to join them.
He was supposed to be 16 years old when he made his international debut.But in the book he admits that that was not the case,as his date of birth was not accurately recorded when he was born.
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