Published: Nov 12, 2014, 07:53 PM (IST)
Edited: Nov 13, 2014, 04:26 PM (IST)
In the lead-up to the ICC World T20 2007, Pakistan’s star fast bowler, Shoaib Akhtar was sent back home for assaulting his teammate Mohammed Asif with a bat. Shoaib claimed that he had been provoked by Shahid Afridi, which was refuted by the Pakistan all-rounder. Nishad Pai Vaidya looks back at a controversy that seems hilarious in hindsight.
Shoaib Akhtar is controversy’s favourite child. In a 13-year long international career, Shoaib not only dazzled on the field with his thunderbolts, but also garnered unwanted attention for his antics off it. In 2007, Shoaib took dressing room banter to the extreme. Shoaib hit Asif’s left thigh with a bat and bruised him. The “Rawalpindi Express” was immediately fined, banned for three matches and withdrawn from the squad for the ICC World T20 2007 in South Africa.
For starters, Shoaib said he had apologised to Asif and accepted his mistake in striking him with the bat. However, he claimed that it was teammate Shahid Afridi, who had provoked him during the incident. These claims added spice to the whole saga. Shoaib and Afridi, two volatile characters, are amongst the most popular Pakistan cricketers and this development put both in the spotlight. Asif got pushed into the backdrop once Afridi’s name cropped up. Initial reports suggested that Shoaib claimed to have Imran Khan’s stature and standing in Pakistan cricket. Afridi and Asif did not buy it and an argument followed. However, Shoaib stated that Afridi had targeted his family.
In reply, Afridi said Shoaib was lying. He said, “Asif could have suffered more injuries had I not stepped in.” Asif, on the other hand, claimed that Shoaib did not apologise to him and that his assault was unprovoked.
Years later, Shoaib wrote about the incident in his autobiography, aptly titled, Controversially Yours. He wrote that Afridi had started taking his mickey. Asif, who was in a bathroom, laughed. Shoaib was provoked and picked up a bat. In a fit of rage, Shoaib opened the bathroom door and pulled Asif out. Meanwhile, Afridi continued to joke around!
“Afridi was aggravating the situation and I swung the bat at both of them. Afridi ducked, but Asif couldn’t get out of the way, the bat struck him on his thighs and he collapsed. I had lost it. I had never behaved like this, especially in the dressing room,” wrote Shoaib.
Shoaib went on to claim that it was Afridi who had leaked this dressing room drama to the media.
What happened next?
(Nishad Pai Vaidya is a Correspondent with CricketCountry and anchor for the site’s YouTube Channel. His Twitter handle is @nishad_45)
