Dale Steyn is not a dangerous bowler: Mohammad Shahzad

Afghanistan wicketkeeper-batsman Mohammad Shahzad is quite a character. "I don't want these many gifts," he said as he sat down to address the media post his team's 37-run loss to South Africa on Sunday with so many mobile phones in front of him with the recorder on. And, when he finished six-and-a-half minutes later, he told the journalists, "take back your gifts", evoking laughter among those present.

His interaction with the media was as entertaining as his knock at the top of the order, smashing South African opening bowlers Kagiso Rabada and Kyle Abbott during his 19-ball 44. Shahzad was disappointed that Dale Steyn did not play. "Dale Steyn is not a dangerous bowler," he said. "Chris Morris is more dangerous because he has height and swings the ball. Steyn has only pace."

"It doesn't matter which bowler we are playing. The (Wankhede) wicket was very good. Unfortunately, we threw away our wickets. All our batsmen play aggressive cricket. We will try and play good cricket against the West Indies and England," Shahzad said.

Shahzad exemplified Afghanistan's fearless batting. "I just play my own game, wait for loose deliveries. Whether it is the first ball of the match or the last ball, four days, T20 or Test match, I play my own game,' said Shahzad, whose favourite cricketer is MS Dhoni.

Afghanistan are on a learning curve. These matches against stronger opponents will only make them better. But immediate attention needs to be paid to batting partnerships and ground fielding. "Those two dropped catches off AB de Villiers, both by Samiullah Shinwari, made the difference," Shahzad said. "South Africa fielded and bowled well, so that's why they won the match. Missed catches and misfields are part of the game. Don't worry, we will try to improve our fielding in the next match."

'Wicket not suited for Steyn'

The assurance with which Shahzad spoke about Steyn won him an admirer. "I like his confidence," South Africa captain Faf du Plessis said at the start of his post-match presser.

On the decision to keep Steyn out, du Plessis said: "The thinking behind this was that for the seamers, it skids on, especially in the first six overs and there is not much swing. And, because Dale is quite a skiddy bowler, this wicket wouldn't suit him much. It is not the Mumbai wicket where there is a bit of extra pace and bounce, it just skids through, so we wanted to bring in a guy like David Wiese, who bowls a bit of variation." 

On a pitch when the Afghanistan top-order went for leather in the first six overs, lanky medium-pacer Chris Morris produced a match-winning 4/27 in four overs. Du Plessis said: "Chris Morris showed that if you bowl with good discipline and good intensity, and you are strong in the way you plan and the way you want to bowl, then there is enough for the bowlers to bowl well. I feel the guys as a bowling unit especially here, if you sit back a little bit and if you are scared about what the batsmen is going to do, the batsmen will punish you in the first six overs. It was a lot of learning for me, especially to see how Chris bowled tonight. It was great for him and his confidence. He has also been one of the guys that has been going for a lot of runs and it was important for our bowlers to get some confidence. That was a great result for Chris Morris."

Du Plessis said Morris's experience in the varying Indian conditions, courtesy IPL, will hold him in good stead in the other matches in Nagpur (against West Indies) and New Delhi (against Sri Lanka).
"Morris is experienced enough as he has played a lot of IPL. He would have played on a few grounds that are slower. He is important to us. He is an all-rounder too and in T20, all-rounders are gold. You need your all-rounders to be on top of their games. That is why JP Duminy, Chris Morris, David Wiese are big players, they balance the side really well," the South African captain said.