Shahid Afridi had some warm words for the the nation and the Indian cricket team.
Speaking to the press ahead of the World T20, Shahid Afridi was all praises for the Indian cricket team and the nation in general. He said he always enjoyed cricket in India and that he’d got a lot of love from the people of the nation, even more than they’d got in Pakistan.
He said to ANI: “India are playing very good cricket. If you look at last game against us in Asia cup, Virat & Yuvraj did really well. There are very less nations where I've enjoyed cricket as much as I've enjoyed cricket in India”
The comments mark a huge change in Shahid Afridi's feelings about India. In 2011, he had said ""They (Indians) will never have hearts like Muslims and Pakistanis. It is a very difficult thing for us to live with them (Indians) or to have long-term relationship with them. Nothing will come out of talks. See how many times in the past 60 years we have had friendship and then how many times things have gone bad."
He had also attacked erstwhile Indian batsman Gautam Gambhir who had dedicated the ICC World Cup win to victims of 26/11 Mumbai attacks. "I think they were very stupid comments by Gautam Gambhir. I was not expecting this from Gautam. This is all politics, what do you know about who carried out the Mumbai attacks?"
"I've not enjoyed playing anywhere as much as I have in India. I am in the last stage of my career and I can say that the love I have got in India is something that I will always remember." He also added the Pakistan cricket team was physically and mentally prepared to go to India. Meanwhile Shoaib Malik said: “I am very happy to be in India, I always get a lot of love. I am honored to be in India...you could figure it out their games have improved big time. Yes, we are little bit behind if you talk about short-term versions & little bit of ODIs as well.”
He also added that he wanted to thank the Indian govt for the security cover which was ‘very good’. He added: "My wife is from India. I come to India a lot, I never had any security. This is a great opportunity for us to perform well and bring Pakistan where the rest of the world is."
Watch the press conference below:
Watch: Shahid Afridi asks Pakistanis to stop hating Indians
Pakistani team finally arrive after dillydallying
Cleared by their government after days of uncertainty over their participation, the Pakistani contingent arrived in India to take part in the World Twenty20 cricket tournament as they landed here after a long flight. The 27-member Pakistan cricket contingent arrived in the city from Abu Dhabi, finally ending days of suspension over their participation in the mega event. The Pakistan contingent comprising 15 players, 12 officials and support staff reached the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport at 7:55 pm amid tight security after the Pakistan government finally gave their Cricket Board the green signal to fly to India.
Hundreds of fans gathered at the airport to welcome the Pakistan team as Shahid Afridi and his players came out of the airport. The Pakistani skipper reciprocated the warm gestures, waving at the crowd before leading his teammates into two buses as they went straight to the team hotel. It took about an hour for the Pakistan players to clear their immigration formalities before they finally came out of the airport to the loud cheers of the fans gathered there. Some fans were also heard shouting 'Three cheers for India'.
There were tight security arrangements for the Pakistani contingent with hundreds of security personnel from CISF and black commandos maintaining a vigil as the players landed at the airport.
The Pakistan contingent includes manager Intikhab Alam, the experienced former Test captain and a high profile security manager.
Due to the delay in their arrival, the Pakistan team has missed out on a warm-up match against Bengal which was scheduled for yesterday. They will now play a practice game against Sri Lanka here on Monday.
Their first match of the main tournament will be held at Eden Gardens on March 16 against a qualifier team, followed by the marquee clash against arch-rival India at the same venue on March 19.
They will then take on New Zealand (March 22) and Australia (March 25) in their remaining Group B matches -- both in Mohali.
The Pakistan team was to fly out on Wednesday but the government put their departure on hold, citing security concerns. On Thursday, Interior Minister Nisar Ali Khan ruled out sending the team until special security assurances were met from India.
With agency inputs
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