Pakistan Beat India So Much That Indian Cricketers Asked Us For Forgiveness After Matches: Shahid Afridi

The mercurial all-rounder added that he always enjoyed playing against India and Australia as he considered them the big guns of limited overs cricketing during his playing days.

Shahid Afridi Photo: AFP

Former Pakistani skipper Shahid Afridi has once again stirred up quite the controversy with another pointed remark of his on the Indian cricket team that he and his Pakistani team mates faced during his cricketing days. Afridi created quite the storm with a bold statement stating the during his cricketing days, Pakistan dominated arch rivals India to such an extent that the Indian cricketers would seek forgiveness from them. The mercurial all-rounder added that he always enjoyed playing against India and Australia as he considered them the big guns of limited overs cricketing during his playing days. Afridi said that he relished the pressure of facing these formidable opponents as it gave him and his side immense satisfaction in performing well in their backyard. “I have always enjoyed India. We’ve beaten them decently, really decently. I believe we’ve beaten them so much that they used to ask us for forgiveness after the match. I have enjoyed a lot playing against India and Australia, you have more pressure. They are good teams, big teams. Going and performing in their conditions is the big thing,” Afridi said on Cric Cast show on YouTube. Afridi also rated his 141-run innings that he scored in the 1999 Chennai Test against India as his favourite knock. "My most memorable innings was the 141 against India, that too in India. I was not going on that trip; they were not taking me. Wasim bhai (Akram) and the chief selector that time supported me a lot. It was a very difficult tour and that inning was very important," Afridi said. In the second innings, opening the batting, Afridi struck 21 boundaries and three sixes as he and Inzamam Ul Haq helped recover Pakistan from 42/2. With wickets falling at one end, Afridi held up the other and scored a brilliant century to take Pakistan to a respectable total of 286. Afridi's recent comments on Kashmir and his verbal duels with former India batsman Gautam Gambhir has led to the deterioration of relationship between him and Indian fans but Afridi said that he stands by what he said then. "I stand by what I said in 2016, that I have got more love in India than from any other country. Back then I had gone there as a captain and hence as an ambassador of Pakistan," he said. The electrifying all-rounder played some whirlwind knocks against arch rivals India, scoring 1524 runs in 67 ODIs and 709 runs from eights Tests.