"I spoke with him" - Shahid Afridi claims he convinced Suresh Raina to delete social media post about T20 World Cup ambassador
Former Pakistan all-rounder Shahid Afridi and former Indian star Suresh Raina faced off several times during India-Pakistan encounters in the past. However, Afridi stressed that the duo share a great camaraderie off the field despite the banters.
Recently, a Pakistan fan on X took a dig at Raina when Afridi was announced as one of the T20 World Cup 2024 ambassadors. The former Indian cricketer responded to the fan in a unique but savage fashion, reminding the Pakistan supporter of the 2011 World Cup semifinal where the hosts beat the Men in Green.
Here's what Suresh Raina had written in an X (formerly Twitter) post:
"I'm not an ICC ambassador, but I have the 2011 World Cup at my house. Remember the game at Mohali? Hope it brings back some unforgettable memories for you."
However, in a video on his YouTube channel, Shahid Afridi claimed that he had a chat with Raina and convinced the latter to delete his tweet. Here's what the Pakistan legend said:
"Raina and I have shared many cricketing moments, and he's a good person. Sometimes, lighthearted banter happens. After seeing his post on social media, I spoke with him, and he understood the situation like a younger brother. He agreed to delete the tweet. It's all good; these things happen."
Afridi called Raina a 'great individual' for acknowledging the conversation and deleting the X post. The former Indian left-hander had played a crucial cameo of 36* as the Men in Blue beat Pakistan by 29 runs in the 2011 World Cup semifinal.
Suresh Raina had recently taken a cheeky dig at Shahid Afridi
Suresh Raina was a Hindi commentator for Jio Cinema during the IPL 2024 season. During the Qualifier 1 between the Kolkata Knight Riders and the SunRisers Hyderabad, former Indian opener Aakash Chopra jokingly asked Raina whether the latter had been making any plans for a comeback.
To this, Raina hilariously replied:
"I am Suresh Raina, not Shahid Afridi."
The southpaw was cheekily referring to how Afridi had pulled out of retirement multiple times. The response left Aakash Chopra and the rest of the commentary box in splits.