DUBAI: Pakistan bowling coach Ashley Noffke is well aware about Shaheen Shah Afridi’s predatory instincts, but the Australian believes the left-armer has a lot more to work on.

Despite ending as the top wicket-taker of this year’s Pakistan Super League, Shaheen went unpicked for the side’s next two assignments – home and away Twenty20 International series against Bangladesh.

The snub was followed by then newly-appointed Pakistan head coach Mike Hesson – who brought in Noffke as part of his staff – saying Shaheen needed to work on improving his bowling.

The pacer, however, returned to the Pakistan squad for the recent T20I and One-day International series against the West Indies, taking six wickets across the tour.

The performance was deemed good enough by the selectors to pick Shaheen for the upcoming UAE tri-series — involving the hosts and Afghanistan — and Asia Cup.

“You can assume he’s a threat, he’s definitely a threat, his career stats are really impressive, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t have things he needs to improve on to become the superstar he wants to be,” Noffke told reporters on the sidelines of Pakistan’s training session at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium on Monday.

Noffke admitted Shaheen’s ability to generate genuine pace received a major blow following his knee injury in 2023 but said the 25-year-old was on his way to finding his best form.

“As for pace, he knows it’s dropped since his major injury, and recovery takes time,” Noffke noted. “But we’re building nicely now.

“Over the West Indies series, we started seeing more deliveries in the 140s again.

“He’s definitely on his way back, and his confidence is growing. It’s a mix of technique, mindset, and also a strong ball release with good seam presentation.

“We want Shaheen to work on swinging the ball consistently. Whether it comes in or goes out is his choice, but we want him to attack the stumps. He’s very dangerous when the ball swings into the right-hander, and he’s been working hard on that.”

Noffke, who believed Pakistan’s seasoned pace pros Shaheen, Hasan Ali and Haris Rauf were “honest” about their weaknesses, said the side needed to expand the pool of fast bowlers to pick from.

“.. we’re building a squad that doesn’t rely on just one person,” he observed. “As a country, we shouldn’t have only one great bowler — we need four or five. Sharing knowledge, helping each other, and developing our skills is key. We can’t just keep doing one thing; we have to evolve in T20 cricket.”

Pakistan open their tri-series campaign against Afghanistan on Friday at Sharjah – where the entire tournament will be held. The Asia Cup is set to be played from Sept. 9-28 in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, with Pakistan taking on Oman in their first match of the event on Sept. 12.

Published in Dawn, August 26th, 2025