Former Pakistani all-rounder Shahid Afridi has come to the defense of his son-in-law, Shaheen Afridi, who was criticized by former cricketer Shoaib Akhtar for leaving the field with an injury during the T20 World Cup final against England.
Former speedster Shoaib Akhtar had claimed in an interview that Shaheen Afridi missed out on the opportunity of becoming a national hero by not completing his spell in the T20 World Cup 2022 final.
He said, “If I was in his [Shaheen Afridi] place, I would have become the greatest celebrity of Pakistan during those 12 minutes by bowling the same number of deliveries. I would’ve come to bowl, fall, break my knees, but I would’ve got up, used injection to numb my knees, and repeated the same again.”
Shahid Afridi responded to Shoaib Akhtar’s comments, highlighting the risks involved in playing with an injury and emphasizing that not everyone has the same ability as the former pacer to continue playing while relying on injections.
“See, this is Shoaib Akhtar’s class. He can do that. It’s difficult, though. Everyone can’t be Shoaib Akhtar. It’s difficult to play with injury if you take injections and painkillers. Because then, you risk aggravating the injury further. Anyway, let’s leave Shoaib Akhtar alone!” said Shahid Afridi.
Shahid Afridi also mocked Shoaib Akhtar for not being able to walk properly due to the side effects of the high-potency medicines he took during his injury. “Shoaib Akhtar took so many injections that he can’t walk now”, said Shahid Afridi.
Earlier, Shoaib Akhtar was also criticized by British commentator Alan Wilkins for glamorizing the idea of playing despite injuries.
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