Former Pakistani pacer Shoaib Akhtar and Afghanistan Premier League founder and ex-Afghanistan official Shafiq Stanikzai got into a war of words on Twitter. This came after cricket fans from both countries came to blows after Pakistan defeated Afghanistan in the Asia Cup 2022 and eliminated them from the competition.
Apart from Afghanistan, the Indian team was also knocked out of the tournament with Pakistan setting up a date with Sri Lanka in the finals on September 11 in Dubai.
In the aftermath of the Pakistan- Afghanistan tie, the Sharjah Cricket Stadium was witness to unsavory scenes as Afghanistan fans, clearly disappointed with the loss, were seen breaking chairs and assaulting Pakistan fans.
Pakistan fans were also seen teasing and taunting Afghanistan fans after Naseem Shah’s two sixes put the Men in Green in the Asia Cup 2022 finals.
In a video shared by former Pakistan pacer Shoaib Akhtar, Afghan fans can be seen breaking chairs and then throwing them toward the Pakistan supporters.
"This is what Afghan fans are doing. This is what they've done in the past multiple times. This is a game and it's supposed to be played and taken in the right spirit.@ShafiqStanikzai your crowd & your players both need to learn a few things if you guys want to grow in the sport," Akhtar wrote in a Twitter post.
Stanikzai didn’t take the advice kindly and reminded Akhtar of how Afghanistan has treated Pakistani cricketing legends like Kabir Khan, Inzamam Ul Haq, and Rashid Latif who had helped Afghan cricket previously. He also advised Akhtar to not bring the nation into cricket.
"You can't control the emotions of the crowd and such incidents happened in the world of cricket multiple, you should go ask Kabir Khan, Inzimam Bhai and @iRashidLatif68 how we treated them. Am giving you an advice next time baat ko nation pe Mat lena," wrote Stanikzai.
The encounter saw some nail-biting moments as Pakistan first restricted Afghanistan to 129/6 in 20 overs and then Afghan bowlers made the opposition batters sweat it out in the middle for each run. In the final over, they needed 11 for a victory, and it was Naseem Shah who turned out to be the hero for Pakistan.
