"Sad to miss out": Shaheen Shah Afridi replaced by Matt Henry at Welsh Fire

The Pakistan left-arme has chosen to pull out of the tournament after being picked by the Cardiff-based side for the fourth edition of the 100-ball competition

Ciaran McCarthy | 03/06/2024 at 12:30

Shaheen Shah Afridi has withdrawn from his forthcoming stint at the Men's Hundred with Welsh Fire.

Pakistan star Afridi was due to represent the Welsh side in the Men's competition for the second year in a row, but has decided to withdraw from the tournament.

He'll be replaced by New Zealand seamer Matt Henry.

Afridi said: "I'm sad to miss out on playing for Welsh Fire this year. I enjoyed The Hundred a lot last season, and I was excited about being back in Cardiff. I wish Mike [Hussey] and the team the best of luck for 2024."

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^{Shaheen was due to represent Welsh Fire again but has withdrawn (Getty Images)}

Afridi played six matches for the Welsh side in the 2023 edition, taking six wickets and returning best figures of 2 for 22.

Henry then played two matches for them at the back end of the tournament, returning three wickets.

He's also had stints with Derbyshire and Somerset in county cricket and has impressed in England with New Zealand, taking 40 wickets between formats.

The Kiwi bowler went unsold in the overseas player pool in this season's draft but is now set to feature in a good chunk of the tournament, potentially missing the early stages due to prior Major League Cricket commitments.

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^{Matt Henry will replace Shaheen after a couple of games with the side in 2023 (Getty Images)}

The American competition crosses over with the Hundred, and a number of players who are involved there were not picked as a result of the scheduling conflict.

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