‘Not favoritism…’; Former Indian cricketer drops his take on Irfan Pathan’s hookah’s Allegation on MS Dhoni

The old clip of an interview with the former Indian cricketer Irfan Pathan is getting viral nowadays, where he recalled the 2008 Australia tour where MS Dhoni reportedly told the media he was not bowling well, even though Irfan took a five-wicket haul in his last ODI under Dhoni’s captaincy.

After the video clip from an interview went viral, the former Indian cricketer Aakash Chopra reacted to the favoritism allegations made by Irfan Pathan over his sudden exit from the team.

“I asked him. During the 2008 Australia series, Mahi bhai’s statement came out in the media that Irfan was not bowling well. I thought I had bowled well throughout the series, so I went and asked Mahi bhai. Sometimes statements are twisted in the media, so I also wanted to clarify. Mahi bhai said, ‘No, Irfan, there is nothing like this, everything’s going as per plans,” Pathan had said during the interview.

The former Indian cricketer Aakash Chopra shared his opinion in the recent allegation of Irfan Pathan. He said that a successful captain like Dhoni does not make team selections based on just one factor.

He also focused on various aspects like form, fitness, team balance and match conditions are considered, so it would be unfair to judge Dhoni’s decisions on a single parameter.

“You want to pick your best team. But if you have seen someone more in front of you and playing under pressure, you move towards them, and that is normal. You will see that players from where the coach or captain are would be preferred more. That is not bias, not favoritism. It is just the fact that they have spent more time with them,” said Chopra in a YouTube video posted by Crex.