Former Pakistan cricketer Shahid Afridi has criticised Indian players after the tournament opener of the World Championship of Legends in Edgbaston was cancelled on Sunday. The official cancellation from WCL came after several Indian players decided to withdraw from the match in view of the geopolitical tensions between the two countries.
Reports suggest players including Yuvraj Singh, Suresh Raina, Harbhajan Singh, Irfan Pathan and Yusuf Pathan decided to pull out following public backlash over the Pahalgam attacks and heightened hostilities in the aftermath of Operation Sindoor.
While these players did not officially confirm their withdrawal, former India batter Shikhar Dhawan posted a statement on social media sharing an email he had sent to organisers, informing them of his decision not to participate in the clash against Pakistan.
Shahid Afridi on India – Pakistan match cancellation:
Meanwhile, Afridi launched a scathing attack on Indian players while talking to the media. He said, “We are here to play cricket, and I’ve always said that cricket should be kept away from politics — it should move forward. A player should be a good ambassador, not a source of embarrassment for their country.”
Afridi noted that if Indian players did not want to play cricket against Pakistan they should have refused to do so before the team arrived.
“We’ve come here to play cricket. If [India] didn’t want to play against Pakistan, they should’ve refused before coming here. But now you’ve arrived, even held practice sessions, and then suddenly changed everything in a single day,” Afridi added.
The former Pakistan captain also hoped that sports would lead to closer relations between the two countries. He said, “Sports bring people closer, but if politics gets involved in everything, how will we move forward? Until we sit together and discuss issues, nothing will improve — lack of communication only makes things worse,”
“We’ve come here to play cricket, to have one-on-one interactions and friendly conversations. But sometimes, there’s one bad egg that spoils everything for everyone else.” Afridi further stated
Some media reports had suggested that it was Afridi’s prescence that had irked the Indian players. Notably, Afridi had made a controversial remark against the Indian army right after the Pahalgam attack which had sparked widespread outrage against the cricketer in India.
Answering a question about his prescence being a pain point, Afridi said, “If I had known the match was being stopped because of me, I wouldn’t have even gone to the ground. But cricket should go on. What is Shahid Afridi in front of cricket? Nothing,” he said.