India and Pakistan have had a tense political relationship which has often affected cricket between the two countries. However, whenever the two teams face each other, there is always plenty of excitement among the fans for the mega-event. Despite the intense rivalry on and off the field, there have been many times when cricketers have been able to put the rivalry aside and connect on a human level.
Here are 5 times cricketers broke rivalry between two nations:
The Kohli-Shaheen chat:
Pakistan fast bowler Shaheen Afridi missed the 2022 Asia Cup due to a knee injury sustained during the Test series in Sri Lanka that year. Many Indian cricketers met Shaheen to take stock of his health ahead of the Asia Cup.
The conversation between Virat Kohli and Shaheen Afridi caught the attention of the fans. The Indian star asked Shaheen about his injury and the Pakistani pacer said he was praying for Kohli to get back to form.
Virendra Sehwag defends Sarfaraz Ahmed:
During the ICC Champions Trophy 2017, former Pakistan skipper Sarfaraz Ahmed was trolled on social media for his English skills. This led to former Indian opener Virender Sehwag taking to Twitter to defend the former Pakistan skipper. He wrote, “Criticizing Sarfaraz for not speaking English is insane. His job is to play&he has done brilliantly 2 take Pak in finals.”
Babar Azam’s message for Virat Kohli:
India’s star batsman Virat Kohli was going through a bit of a rough patch in international cricket in 2022. Pakistan captain Babar Azam took to his Twitter account to write a heartfelt message for Kohli, he wrote, “This too shall pass. Stay strong.”
Virat Kohli replied to the message, writing, “Thank you. Keep shining and rising. Wish you all the best”
Azhar Ali’s sons with Indian legends:
Former Pakistani opening batter Azhar Ali shared a glimpse of when ‘Indian legends’ Yuvraj Singh and MS Dhoni made time to meet his sons after the ICC Champions Trophy 2017 Final.
Azhar Ali wrote on Twitter, “Thanks to these legends for sparing their time for my kids they were so happy….”
Virat Kohli’s jersey for Shahid Afridi:
Shahid Afridi retired from the game of cricket at the age of 36 after playing 27 Test matches, 398 ODIs and 98 T20I matches. After his retirement, the Indian team gifted him a jersey which was signed by all the players and the head coach along with the scribbling, ‘To Shahid Bhai. Best wishes. Always a pleasure playing against you”
Afridi shared the picture of the Indian team jersey on Twitter, he wrote, “Thank you to you and the entire Indian team for a wonderful farewell gift Virat Kohli. Respect superstar, hope to see you soon”
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Updated: 24 Jun 2023, 10:11 AM IST
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