VIDEO | Rohail Nazir eerily mirrors AB de Villiers to pull outrageous reverse-scoop off Shaheen Afridi

As a cricket fan, let alone as a normal human, we are currently in the midst of a very dark period in history, with the global pandemic that is the Covid-19 outbreak bringing a halt to almost every action there is out there in the world. Luckily, albeit being played behind closed doors, the Pakistan Super League (PSL) has given fans something to watch and cheer about, with it, over the course of the last week or so, producing several nail-biting thrillers, outstanding individual performances and bizarre moments - basically, a perfect T20 package. And on Sunday, the game between Multan Sultans and Lahore Qalandars gave us, the fans, another moment to cherish. 

The moment was provided to us by none other than Pakistan’s U19 skipper, Rohail Nazir. Batting first, in the 19th over with the score 161/5, the Sultans were looking to accelerate towards the fag end, but had to deal with a raging Shaheen Afridi, who was in ‘yorker mode’. But when the youngster marginally missed his mark on the fifth ball, Nazir showed the world a glimpse of what could potentially be a regularity in the years to come. The 18-year-old wicket-keeper, for a moment, transformed himself into AB de Villiers and played the South African’s ‘reverse-scoop’ to perfection, almost making everyone believe that he was momentarily possessed by the Proteas legend himself. 

The ball raced off to the boundary and left everyone watching in awe - the players and the fans on television, of course - and gave a timely reminder of the talent Nazir possesses. Afridi, however, had the last laugh as he castled the U19 skipper on the very next ball with a yorker. But that’s a different story, though. For now, we will cherish this incredible shot played by a prodigal youngster.