With just days remaining before Pakistan’s much-anticipated Test series against Australia, a video clip capturing a heated exchange between former captain Sarfaraz Ahmed and Saud Shakeel during nets practice has surfaced, adding a layer of intrigue to the pre-series preparations.
In the footage, Sarfaraz and Shakeel appear to be embroiled in a verbal altercation, raising questions about the nature of their disagreement. The argument revolves around an unspecified swap, with Shakeel expressing his frustration, asking, “For how long will I continue to be of use to you?”
Sarfaraz responds assertively, stating, “You won’t be of any use to me. To begin with, I never instructed you to do anything. I never requested you to make a swap. I swapped with the person I intended to.”
Interestingly, this altercation follows a seemingly light-hearted incident between the two players during Pakistan’s intra-squad match before their departure to Australia. Sarfaraz playfully appealed to the umpire when Shakeel casually strolled onto the field. This led to a sprint by Shakeel without his gloves, resulting in cheers from the Pakistani players when the umpire declared him not out.
The Test series against Australia holds particular significance for Pakistan as it marks the beginning of a transition post-Babar Azam’s captaincy resignation. Shan Masood takes the helm as the new Test captain, while Shaheen Afridi leads in the T20Is. “This is an important series for Pakistan as we are leading the World Test Championship’s point table at the moment,” expressed Afridi.
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