Lanka Premier League 2020: ‘Play the game and don't indulge in abusive talk’ - Shahid Afridi reveals advice to Naveen-ul-Haq
Galle Gladiators captain Shahid Afridi has issued a clarification on his incident with Kandy Tuskers pacer Naveen-ul-Haq, which took place after Monday's LPL 2020 game. A video of the former Pakistan skipper giving an earful to the Afghanistan bowler after the conclusion of the match between the two sides went viral on social media.
Taking to his official Twitter account, Shahid Afridi shared the video and stated that he only advised Naveen-ul-Haq to play the sport and not get abusive.
“My advise to the young player was simple, play the game and don't indulge in abusive talk. I have friends in the Afghanistan team and we have very cordial relations. Respect for teammates and opponents is the basic spirit of the game,”
Shahid Afridi, whose franchise Galle Glaidators succumbed to their third defeat in a row against Kandy Tuskers, posted the statement in response to the official Sky Sports Cricket Twitter handle.
Why exactly was Shahid Afridi angry at Naveen-ul-Haq?
Galle Gladiators captain Shahid Afridi was peeved with Kandy Tuskers bowler Naveen-ul-Haq. The youngster got into an argument with left-arm pacer Mohammad Amir during the sixth match of LPL 2020, on Monday.
Naveen-ul-Haq gave Amir a piece of his mind towards the fag end of the match. Amir, unsurprisingly, wasn’t too pleased with the Afghanistan youngster’s tactics. The verbal argument carried on even after Kandy Tuskers overcame Galle Gladiators by 25 runs in the game.
After the match, when players from both teams were exchanging handshakes, Afridi was seen smiling until he came across Naveen-ul-Haq. The 40-year-old’s expression changed instantly, and he was seen confronting the Afghanistan pacer over what transpired with Amir during the game.
“Kya hua (what happened),” questioned Shahid Afridi as soon as he saw Naveen-ul-Haq. According to some reports, the veteran all-rounder apparently also chided Naveen-ul-Haq, telling him, "Son I was scoring 100s in international cricket before you were born.”
Shahid Afridi had his fair share of incidents on the pitch
While Shahid Afridi’s advice to Naveen-ul-Haq was well-intended, the Pakistan skipper himself wasn’t always a saint during his playing days. His feud with another hot-headed cricketer, former India opener Gautam Gambhir, is well-publicised.
During an ODI at Kanpur in 2007, Gambhir and Shahid Afridi were involved in an ugly brawl after the former ran into him while completing a single. Tempers flared, and the two almost came to blows before being separated by the umpire.
The spat between continued after Shahid Afridi criticised Gambhir in his biography. In fact, the two cricketers were taking constant digs at each other as recently as a few months ago.