Shahid Afridi and Gautam Gambhir (Photo Source: Twitter)
The rivalry between India and Pakistan is one of the fiercest ones in international cricket as the two Asian heavyweights have engaged in several intense battles over the years. As the stakes are high during the high-voltage clash, the tempers have often flared on the pitch with players getting involved in heated verbal battles.
One of the most famous on-field spats in an India-Pakistan game was between Gautam Gambhir and Shahid Afridi during an ODI in 2007. Since then, the duo have been at loggerheads with each other and have openly expressed their disagreement in both cricket and political issues. Recently, Afridi was asked whether he could provoke Gambhir a lot during his playing days. The former all-rounder answered that sledging is part and parcel of the game and called Gambhir a ‘different character’ than others.
“These things go on cricket. It’s normal. And I feel it has been more hyped up in social media. Woh different kisam ka character hain, aam players se thoda alag hain (He has a different character from that of normal players). His reputation is the same in Team India as well. It is not like it was only with me…he…I feel we should discuss more positive things in this show,” Afridi said on the show ‘Had Kar Di’ with Momin Saqib.
Further praising Gambhir, Afridi stated that he’s a terrific timer of the ball and very Indian batters have that skill.
“Very few Indian batters I’ve seen having such good timing with the bat. He is an outstanding player,” the former Pakistan skipper added.
Afridi and Gambhir shared a heartwarming moment in Legends League Cricket match
Notably, the duo shared a heartwarming moment earlier this year as they were spotted shaking hands with each other during a game in Legends League Cricket in Doha. Later on in the game, Afridi even checked on Gambhir after he got hit while batting. The two moments went viral all over social media and the duo got was lauded for their sportsman spirit despite their differences.