“When I first played a first-class match in 2017 for KRL, that was quite a good debut,” Afridi, who took 8 for 39 as a 17-year-old in that game, said. “Red-ball cricket is always my first priority. I’ve always loved it. I didn’t get enough time to play because of international cricket, but I haven’t been playing much cricket the last couple of months. So it’s an opportunity to play red-ball cricket.”

Afridi, who was not selected for Pakistan’s tours to the West Indies and England, said he wants to regain his place in Pakistan’s Test squad. Pakistan’s bowling has notably lacked pace over the last two series, with the team preferring medium-fast bowlers over the perceived higher ceiling of Afridi. However, Afridi’s explosive pace and electric start to Test cricket were both on the wane when he lost his spot in the Test side. His last 27 wickets have come at an average of over 40, after his treatment for a knee injury in 2022 was famously bungled by the PCB, demonstrating the speed of that decline.

“I’ll try to bowl the same way in first-class cricket the way I’ve bowled in Test cricket,” he said. “I’ve not played red-ball cricket the last few months. Before that, I’d been playing red-ball cricket continuously. If you play international cricket, then coming back to domestic cricket can be challenging. Because you’ve been playing international cricket constantly in all three formats, it keeps you busy. When you’re free, you should play domestic cricket.”