KARACHI: Former Pakistan captain and star all-rounder Shahid Afridi opined regarding the current skipper Babar Azam’s tweet in support of India’s top batter Virat Kohli and claimed that it would be a big deal if the latter responds.
Afridi, while speaking to a local news program hailed the Pakistan captain for his sportsmanship, while remaining uncertain about a response from Indian batter Kohli on the former’s tweet.
“Look, cricket or any other sport foster healthy ties between the nations. Athletes can play a better role than politicians and I think, they do the same. So, in my view, a very good message was portrayed by Babar Azam,” Afridi stated.
“I don’t know if any response has been made from there but I think Virat should have responded by now and if he does, it would be a big deal, however, it seems uncertain to me,” he maintained.
The former Pakistan captain then held Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, responsible for the rift between the cricketers of the two nations, while giving reference to the statements of former cricketers Yuvraj Singh and Harbhajan Singh.
“I think the problem with India is Modi. All these issues began to rise since he became the Prime Minister. Otherwise, there were no such things before that,” Afridi claimed.
“I recall when some things were said about the foundation in the past, and the way Bhajji [Harbhajan] and Yuvraj Singh reacted was due to Modi’s government’s pressure, as he [Modi] does not like positive statements made about Pakistan,” he concluded.
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