Former India all-rounder Irfan Pathan recounted a past episode where he had a heated exchange with Shahid Afridi during a flight. Pathan and Afridi shared several memorable battles on the field, where the former emerged victorious on several occasions, including the 2007 T20 World Cup final, where he dismissed the former Pakistan all-rounder for a golden duck.
The left-handed all-rounder relished clashes against Pakistan, picking up 67 wickets across formats and amassing 807 runs with the bat, including a memorable century. The fierce India-Pakistan rivalry added extra intensity to the clash between Pathan and Afridi.
Pathan revealed that when Team India was on a tour of Pakistan in 2006, both teams were travelling together on the same flight from Karachi to Lahore, and that’s where he had a heated argument with Afridi. The veteran Indian all-rounder elaborated on the matter and said that it was Afridi who started it by messing up his hair and calling him a kid.
“During the 2006 tour, we were travelling by flight from Karachi to Lahore. Both teams were travelling together. Afridi came and placed his hand on my head, messing up my hair. He asked me, “How are you kid?” I said, “Since when have you become my father?”. The childish behaviour was actually his. He was not my friend. After that, Afridi said some abusive words to me. His seat was right next to mine,” Pathan said on Lallantop.
“Shahid Afridi has eaten dog meat”
Pathan, the Player of the Match in the 2007 T20 World Cup final, added that Abdul Razzaq was seated next to him during the flight, and he casually asked him about the different kinds of meat available there, which shocked the Pakistan all-rounder.
“Abdul Razzaq was sitting with me then. I asked him what kind of meat is available here. He told me about the different kinds of meat. Then I asked if dog meat was available. Afridi was sitting right there. Razzaq was shocked to hear this and said, ‘Hey Irfan, why are you saying this?’,” he added.
Pathan revealed that he didn’t hold back and said Afridi had eaten the dog’s meat, which is why he had been barking.
“I said, “He (Afridi) has eaten dog meat, he has been barking for a long time” After that, Afridi couldn’t say anything. Whatever he might have said, I would have just said, ‘Look, he is barking again.’ After this, he remained silent throughout the flight. From this incident, he understood that he could not win against me verbally. That’s why he never said anything to me again,” he added.