During a recent Sindh Premier League (SPL) match at Karachi’s National Bank Arena, Pakistan all-rounder Iftikhar Ahmed and former Test batter Asad Shafiq were involved in a heated exchange.
The incident happened during the eighth over of the match, when Karachi Ghazi’s Iftikhar got Larkana Challengers’ Asad out while they were chasing 161 runs.
A video that’s been shared a lot on social media shows Iftikhar celebrating in an exaggerated way right at Asad, which made the right-handed batter upset and he quickly walked towards the bowler.
After the incident, Iftikhar took to his ‘X’ account, where he issued an apology, admitting that he should not have behaved in such a way.
I am extremely apologetic for my behaviour in the field today. I shouldn’t have reacted the way I did in the heat of the moment. I’ve apologised to Asad Shafiq Bhai in person after the match and have always held great regards for him. We have played a lot of cricket together.
It should be noted that Karachi Gazis won by 68 runs, courtesy of a brilliant all-round performance by Iftikhar. He smashed a brilliant 69 runs, and took three crucial wickets, restricting the opponent to 92 runs.
Meanwhile, the 33-year-old’s all-around brilliance and match-winning performance earned him the Player of the Match award.