Afridi: Born to lead
Ever since he made his debut in 1996, cricket pundits have found it near impossible to bracket Shahid Afridi’s contributions, writes Aditya Iyer in the Indian Express
Akhila Ranganna
25-Feb-2013
Ever since he made his debut in 1996, cricket pundits have found it near impossible to bracket Shahid Afridi’s contributions, writes Aditya Iyer in the Indian Express. However, during the course of this World Cup, though, Afridi has proven that his real gift lies in being a leader, a ringmaster. Having revealed his truest identity, captain Afridi has knitted the team together, inspiring every member to collectively walk down the paths of glory.
Pulling his team into a huddle, Afridi culminated practice on Monday with a word of advice to each of his players. It wasn’t the advice that was important, but the very nature of the huddle itself. Unlike the shoulder-link-shoulder huddle, this one was a disjointed version — with Afridi at the centre of the circle, and everyone’s undivided attention. Just as his ego demands. The batting may fail and the bowling may not click, but Afridi has forever replaced his flawed allrounder’s tag with the label of a flawless, inspirational leader.
Akhila Ranganna is assistant editor (Audio) at ESPNcricinfo