Shahid Afridi’s old advice for Naveen-ul-Haq after spat with Virat Kohli goes viralDon't indulge in abusive talk

By India Today Sports DeskAfghanistan fast bowler Naveen-ul-Haq has hogged most of the limelight after his controversy with former Indian skipper Virat Kohli. On Monday, May 1, the duo were involved in a heated exchange after the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 match between Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) and Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB).

Even as Kohli was fined 100 percent of his match fees, Naveen copped a fine of 50 percent of his fees. During this while, an old tweet of former Pakistan all-rounder Shahid Afridi from December 2020 has surfaced.

Back then, Naveen was involved in a controversy during the match between Kandy Tuskers and Galle Gladiators in the inaugural edition of the Lanka Premier League (LPL). Amir had a war of words with Mohammad Amir, after which he exchanged some stern words with Afridi.

Later, Afridi advised Naveen to not be abusive and have respect for teams and opposition players.

Afridi took to Twitter and wrote, “My advice to the young player was simple, play the game and don’t indulge in abusive talk. I have friends in the Afghanistan team and we have very cordial relations. Respect for teammates and opponents are the basic spirit of the game.”

Replying to Afridi’s tweet, Naveen wrote, “Always ready to take advice and give respect,Cricket is a gentleman’s game but if someone says you all are under our feet and will stay their then he is not only talking about me but also talking about my people.”

Naveen is an experienced campaigner in the T20 format, having played the format since 2017. In 136 T20 matches, the fast bowler has picked up 167 wickets at an economy rate of 8.01 with three four-wicket hauls and one five-wicket haul to show for his efforts. Naveen has also played seven ODIs and 27 T20Is for the Afghans since September 2016.