Former India captain Virat Kohli was seen sharing a wholesome moment with Pakistan captain Babar Azam after the match. The Delhi batter gave a couple of signed India jerseys to the 28-year-old Babar after the ‘Men in Blue’ crushed Pakistan’s hopes of a first ODI World Cup win against their arch-rivals at the Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad on Saturday, October 14.
However, legendary Pakistani pacer Wasim Akram felt that after the comprehensive seven-wicket defeat, Babar taking the India jerseys from Kohli in front of the world wasn’t the right thing to do. In fact, Wasim opined that the talismanic Pakistani batter could have accepted the present inside the dressing room.
During a segment of The Pavilion, a Pakistan TV show, Wasim was read out a fan question by host Fakhr-e-Alam.
“I can see Babar is receiving two shirts from Virat Kohli. Everybody is showing this clip over and over again. But after your fans are so hurt after a disappointing performance, this should be a private matter, it should not be done in an open ground,” the fan wrote.
Wasim agreed to this and stated: “That’s what I exactly said when I saw the picture [getting the shirts publicly, not privately]. Today was not the day to do this. If you want to do it – if your uncle’s son has asked you to get Kohli’s shirt – then do it after the game in the dressing room.”
India extended their incredible winning streak to eight against Pakistan in the ODI World Cups. This was also India’s third win on the trot in the ongoing edition of the showpiece event after beating Australia and Afghanistan in the two previous encounters. They will now face Bangladesh on Thursday, October 19 in Pune. Meanwhile, the ‘Men in Green’, who suffered their first loss in the tournament, will look to bounce back against Australia on Friday, October 20 in Bengaluru.