"I kept teasing him" - Shaheen Afridi opens up on his altercation with Matthew Breetzke in PAK vs SA ODI tri-series 2025 clash
Pakistan pace spearhead Shaheen Shah Afridi has opened up on his on-field altercation with South African batter Matthew Breetzke during their tri-series clash in Karachi on Wednesday (February 12). While the left-arm speedster admitted that he kept teasing the batter to get a wicket, he revealed they both became friends later.
The incident occurred during the 28th over of the innings as Breetzke turned a ball away to the on-side for a single and almost collided with Afridi while running between the wickets. The 24-year-old was not happy about the same and got involved in a heated altercation with the right-handed batter, forcing their respective teammates to step in and separate them.
Speaking after the match on Wednesday, the southpaw said whatever happens on the field stays there and that they bonded well off it. As quoted by CricketPakistan, he stated:
"For the first time, Matthew didn’t say anything. I kept teasing him to get a wicket. Whatever happened on the field stayed there. However, after the match, Matthew and I met, shook hands, and became good friends."
As per the latest development, Afridi has been fined 25 per cent of his match fee for being involved in the altercation as he breached Article 2.12 of the ICC Code of Conduct that relates to "inappropriate physical contact with a Player, Player Support Personnel, Umpire, Match Referee or any other person (including a spectator) during an International Match."
"The messages you send out on social media are seen by everyone" - Shaheen Afridi
The youngster also went on to underline media's role and urged fans and journalists not to create divisions among the players. On this, he added:
"You in the media have an important role. The messages you send out on social media are seen by everyone. Whatever good the media highlights, it reaches the entire world. Here, there is no Babar or Shaheen; there is only Pakistan. As long as there is negativity, there will be no progress anywhere."
Pakistan, meanwhile, defeated South Africa by six wickets on Wednesday to set up the final against New Zealand on February 14.