Former Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi was not at all pleased with the statement made by Shadab Khan on ex-Pakistani players recently. Following Pakistan's defeat to India in the T20 World Cup 2026, Shadab became a target for previous players, who questioned the all-rounder's inclusion in the squad.

Shadab retaliated, claiming that at the very least, he had been a member of the Pakistan team that defeated India in an ICC event, something the previous generation had failed to do.

He alluded to the fact that he was part of the Pakistani side that defeated India in the 2021 T20 World Cup, the Green Shirts' lone World Cup victory over archrivals.

Afridi remained unimpressed with Shadab after seeing him responding with words and not with his on-field performance. He further stated that the Pakistan team, which defeated India in the 2021 T20 World Cup, could not handle the success they achieved.

"Shadab ne bilkul theek kaha. Hum nahi jeete, wo jeete. Unhe izzat mili par wo izzat sambhaal nahi paaye. 2021 ke baad unhone jab kar diya, tab unke aapas ke problems sambhaal nahi paaye, as an individual nahi sambhaal paaye, as a team nahi sambhaal paaye. (Shadab said absolutely right. We didn't win; they won. They got respect, but they couldn't handle that respect. After 2021, when they achieved something, they couldn't manage their internal problems—neither individually nor as a team," he said on Samaa TV.

Afridi also highlighted that Shadab Khan has seemingly forgotten the support he received from ex-cricketers when he was not performing and was dropped from the Pakistan team.

"Shadab ko ye bhi pata hona chahiye ki jab usse performances nahi ho rahi thi, tab team se bahar kiya jaa raha tha, hum hi TV channels pe baith kar bolte they ki Shadab backbone hai, Shadab ke overs bohot important hain, batting bhi kar leta hai. Honestly bataun, Shadab is a very good boy. Bohot acche se sabse milta hai. (Shadab should also know that when he wasn't performing, he was being dropped from the team. At that time, we were the ones sitting on TV channels saying that Shadab is the backbone, his overs are very important, and he can also bat. Honestly speaking, Shadab is a very good boy. He meets everyone very nicely," Afridi remarked.

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While Pakistan has managed to qualify for the Super 8s, Afridi urged Shadab and the Pakistan team to respond with performance as he warned them about sterner challenges. Pakistan is placed with Sri Lanka, New Zealand, and England in group 2 in the Super 8s stage.

"Hum bhi jab cricket khelte they, hamare baare mein bhi bohot baatein ki hain ex-cricketers ne. Lanat hai tak bola gaya tha. Hamne unko bardasht kiya aur performances ki, choti team ke khilaaf nahi, badi team ke khilaaf. Hum performance se jawaab dete they. (Even when we used to play cricket, ex-cricketers said a lot of things about us too. They even said, 'Lanat hai' (curse). We tolerated it and responded with performances, not against small teams, but against big teams. We answered through performance," the former Pakistan captain continued.

"Shadab miyaan, aapki performance bhi Namibia ke khilaaf thi, aap New Zealand ke khilaaf karein. Beta perform karo. Mushkil waqt mein hum aapke sath khade rahe. Aapne aggressive cricket nahi kheli, uske bawajood aap Pakistan team mein aa gaye. Performance karke hamein jawaab do taaki hum bhi khaamosh ho jaayein. Perform karo, World Cup khatam ho jaaye, hum khud khaamosh ho jayengi beta ji. (Shadab, your performance was against Namibia; now do it against New Zealand. Son, give performances. In tough times, we stood by you. You didn't play aggressive cricket, yet you still made it back into the Pakistan team. Now respond with performances so that we also become silent. Perform, once the World Cup is over, we ourselves will go quiet, son," Afridi concluded.

Pakistan will clash with New Zealand in their first Super 8s game on February 21 in Colombo.