India and Pakistan share one of the fiercest sports rivalries with their cricket teams producing several epic clashes over the years. Naturally, the emotions run high on the field and some times, players lose their cool resulting in heated on-field exchanges.
One of the infamous moments from an India-Pakistan contest came during an ODI between the two teams in 2007 when Gautam Gambhir and Shahid Afridi had a verbal altercation forcing the on-field umpire to intervene.
Their on-field spate turned into an ugly feud with the two exchanging jibes on social media and elsewhere with Afridi even mentioning that incident in his autobiography.
Recently, during an interview, Afridi talked about Gambhir, claiming he’s different from other players but was all praise for his quality as a batter.
When asked if he deliberately provoked Gambhir to get a rise out of his opponent, Afridi said it was something that’s common during matches and that the incident was hyped up due to social media.
“These things are commonplace. Because of social media, it gets hyped. He’s a different player from others, a different character. His reputation is similar within the Indian team,” Afridi said on YouTube channel Had Kar Di.
However, Afridi was quick to point out the positive aspect of Gambhir.
“Let’s talk about positive things. I have rarely seen an Indian opener whose timing is as good as his. He’s an outstanding player,” said the former Pakistan captain.
Afridi was highly critical of Gambhir in his autobiography, alleging the former India opener has ‘attitude problem’ and has ‘no great records’ to speak of.
Responding to Afridi’s claims, Gambhir said the former allrounder hasn’t grown mentally and that his “records are in the open. Becoming ICC Test player of the year, winning Test series and World Cups. People will decide what I have done for the country. Some people are really mentally ill and so need psychiatrist treatment.”
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