Shaheen Afridi said his friend Harry Brook had played the “innings of his life” after guiding England through to the semi-finals of the T20 World Cup.
The England captain scored 100 in 50 balls to set up a nervy win over Pakistan in Sri Lanka.
When Shaheen dismissed him one ball after he reached the milestone, the bowler made a point of following Brook and shaking his hand.
It was an impressive gesture, given Brook’s innings had left Pakistan on the brink of exiting the tournament, but Shaheen said he felt it was well merited.
“He deserved it because he had played the world-class innings in his life,” Shaheen said.
“I think it’s the best innings. Harry and me had a very good friendship as we played together in [the Pakistan Super League] as he played with us for Lahore Qalandars. I think if anyone played an innings like that, you should appreciate it.”
Brook was one of several players the Qalandars have recruited before they were famous.
He has since graduated to become one of the world’s leading batters, and his record against Pakistan – against whom he scored a Test triple century – is particularly formidable.
“When we picked him in PSL Lahore, I don't think he had played for England at that time,” Shaheen said.
“He was just playing county cricket and maybe Under 19 cricket. But throughout, he played in Asian wickets and improved a lot.
“He batted No 4 or No 5, but today he has come in at No 3. I think you need a leader who can take responsibility in big games. He improved a lot and he showed us how well he can bat.
“I think this will be his best innings of his life. He should be credited for playing proper cricketing shots. The wicket was not easy. If we look at the batsmen, they were all struggling. But if we look at his knock, he should be credited.”
While the result meant England became the first side through to the last four, Pakistan are now in the familiar position of needing results to go their way to stay in the tournament.
If New Zealand beat Sri Lanka on Wednesday, Pakistan’s prospects of progressing will be all but over.
“These things happen in cricket, but we are still in the tournament, [and] anything can happen,” Shaheen said.
“We are thinking that we get this one opportunity; firstly, we should win [their last match against Sri Lanka]. We will see. I hope New Zealand loses their match.”
It is the fifth time in successive T20 World Cups that England have made the semi-finals. Brook said they are on track, despite having yet to play at peak form.
“It's just cricket, isn't it,” Brook said. “We're winning games. We're not winning them perfectly but thankfully we are winning games.
“We haven't had the perfect game yet and hopefully that's just around the corner with our main players firing.
“We have just got to try and stay in the moment as much as possible, and not focus on the semi-final now because we've still got another [Super Eight] game against New Zealand, who are a very strong side and playing well as well.”
