'A Pakistan Fan Started Abusing Us While Recording': Vijay Shankar Recalls Bizarre Incident Ahead Of His World Cup Debut

Recalling a bizarre incident from his dream debut before the high-octane clash, Vijay Shankar revealed how few Indian players were abused by a Pakistan fan.

Photo: AFP

New Delhi: Indian cricket team all-rounder Vijay Shankar made his World Cup debut last year as BCCI picked him for team India's 2019 WC 15-member squad ahead of veteran Ambati Rayudu, referring him as a 3-D player. Shankar made debut against his team's arch-rivals Pakistan in Manchester. Recalling a bizarre incident from his dream debut before the high-octane clash, the young all-rounder revealed how few Indian players were abused by a Pakistan fan. "Few of us players had gone out for coffee one day before the game, when a Pakistan fan came up to us and he was literally abusing us. So that was my first experience of an India-Pakistan game," Shankar revealed while talking on Bharat Army podcast during 'Cricket World Cup 2019 Rewind'. "We just had to take it. He was abusing us and recording everything, so we couldn't react. All we could do was sit and watch what he was doing," he added. The 29-year-old also revealed how spending some chill time with wicketkeeper-batsman Dinesh Karthik helped him cope better with pressure ahead of his World Cup debut game. "It's very hard for me to sit in a room and do nothing," Shankar said. "I want to go out for a coffee and all and I had Dinesh Karthik with me. So the two of us would go out for coffee. We used to have some fun, which is very important, I feel, because the pressure is very high. So we just have to give some time to ourselves, ease out and chill." In the match against Pakistan on June 16 at the Old Trafford, Shankar dismissed Pak opener Imam ul Haq to get a wicket on the very first ball he bowled. The all-rounder remained unbeaten scoring 15 runs with the bat. Team India eventually defeated Pakistan by 89 runs (DLS method), for record seventh time in ODI World Cups. ALSO WATCH | Not Only In Bollywood, Nepotism Is There In Politics, Cricket And Businesses Too