3 times a cricketer's personal chats got leaked to public ft. Babar Azam
Babar Azam-led Pakistan have had a disastrous campaign at the ongoing 2023 World Cup, winning just two games so far. After winning their first two matches and looking set for a spot in the semi-finals, they have gone on to lose their next four encounters.
Just when we thought it couldn't get any worse for the Men in Green, it has. Babar Azam's WhatsApp chat has been leaked, and it was aired on national television during a talk show on ARY News. The alleged conversation is between Babar and PCB COO Salman Naseer.
Let's explore three instances when a cricketer's personal chats were leaked.
#1 Babar Azam
The Babar Azam-leaked chat incident comes just days after Pakistan's defeat to South Africa in the World Cup, which makes it very difficult for them to qualify for the semi-finals. There were rumors that Babar could be stripped of his captaincy duties after failing to lead the team well.
Moreover, former Pakistan skipper Rashid Latif also claimed that the players haven't been given their wages for the last few months. This further added fuel to the fire and caused more havoc in and around the Pakistan cricket fraternity.
Former Pakistan cricketers like Waqar Younis, Shahid Afridi, and Azhar Ali have condemned the act of displaying the leaked chat of Babar. It will be interesting to see how this whole situation pans out and whether or not Babar Azam is sacked as captain.
#2 Mohammad Shami
Mohammad Shami has been on fire in the ongoing World Cup. After not being included in the first few matches, it was Hardik Pandya's injury that eventually led to both Suryakumar Yadav and Shami finding a place in the playing XI.
Shami has picked up nine wickets in his two World Cup outings this year. However, he was also in the midst of a leaked chat scandal in 2018. His then-wife, Hasin Jahan, made various allegations against him and shared screenshots to prove her point.
She claimed that Shami was having extramarital affairs and also accused him of domestic violence. This led to the pacer's image being tarnished, and BCCI also withheld his annual contract. However, Shami bounced back from the setback and took his career to another level.
#3 Imam-ul-Haq
Imam-ul-Haq had just burst onto the scene when he was caught up in a controversy. Two years after making his Pakistan debut, Imam was accused of using his stardom to exploit multiple girls at the same time.
All the girls claimed that the batter had a relationship with them, but he was using his fame to cheat on them and get away with it. The girls took screenshots of his conversations with them and posted them on social media platforms like Instagram and Twitter.
Thankfully, for the then-23-year-old, PCB didn't take any serious action. Inzamam-ul-Haq's nephew was given a warning after he apologized for what he did at the time. Now an established batter in the top order of the Babar Azam-led side, Imam has scored over 4000 runs in international cricket.