Shaheen Shah Afridi will make his first appearance in the Lanka Premier League this season after the Pakistan Cricket Board cleared him to play for Kandy Royals. The board confirmed the no-objection certificate this week, opening the door for the fast bowler to feature in a tournament that starts on July 17.
Afridi joins Kandy Royals for their opening match against Dambulla Sixers on July 18, and the timing lines up with a stretch where his Test career has taken a back seat to white-ball commitments.
Why Afridi Missed Pakistan’s Test Squads
Afridi was left out of Pakistan’s Test squads for the series against West Indies and England earlier this month, a decision that followed a stretch of inconsistent red-ball form. Selector and high-performance director Aaqib Javed addressed the shift directly, noting that a player eventually has to choose which format suits him best.
Pakistan’s Test series against West Indies overlaps with the LPL window, which made Afridi’s format preference even more relevant. He had already been named in the white-ball training camp at the National Cricket Academy while the red-ball group trained separately, and he sat out the second Test against Bangladesh in Sylhet as well. Taken together, these moves point to a bowler whose workload is now being managed with limited-overs cricket as the priority.
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Afridi’s Recent Form and Captaincy Record
Pakistan handed Afridi the ODI captaincy last year, and he has already delivered results in the role. He led the side to a 2-1 series victory over Australia on home soil last month, finishing as joint-leading wicket-taker in that series with seven scalps at an average of 12.14.
He shared that distinction with left-arm spinner Arafat Minhas, who made his debut in the series opener, and with Australia’s Nathan Ellis. The numbers reflect a bowler still operating at a high level in the 50-over format, even as questions persist about his red-ball output.
A Return to Overseas T20 Cricket
This LPL stint marks Afridi’s second appearance in an overseas T20 league within the past year. His last venture abroad came in the Big Bash League, where he played for Brisbane Heat and struggled to make an impact, taking just two wickets at an average of 76.50 across four matches.
That form has not dented the demand for his services on the global T20 circuit, though. Afridi’s overall T20 record stands at 362 wickets at an average of 20.99 and an economy rate of 7.97. In T20Internationals specifically, no Pakistan bowler has taken more wickets than his tally of 136, which have come at an average of 21.35 and an economy of 7.83.
Kandy Royals will be counting on those numbers translating into form as the LPL season gets underway. With the tournament running through August 8, Afridi has close to a month to reset after his BBL disappointment and show franchises around the world why he remains one of the most sought-after quicks in T20 cricket.
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