Afridi says he has ‘old and strong relations’ with Yuvraj, Harbhajan

Despite all the drama that followed when Indian cricketers Yuvraj Singh and Harbhajan Singh extended their support to Shahid Afridi for his coronavirus campaign, Afridi says that he has great respect for them both and that they have “old and strong relations”.

Lala shared this while responding to a Twitter user during an #AskAfridi session on the microblogging website.

We have old and strong relations and I still have respect for both

— Shahid Afridi (@SAfridiOfficial) July 29, 2020

In April, Yuvraj and Harbhajan had extended their support to Afridi’s foundation, the Shahid Afridi Foundation, in its fight against the coronavirus pandemic, following which they received scathing criticism from triggered Indian social media users.

Following the hate, Singh clarified that his intention was not to hurt anyone’s feelings and that he remains a true patriot and will always “bleed blue.” Singh’s note was retweeted by Harbhajan.

Meanwhile, Harbhajan’s wife Geeta Basra responding to the trolling had said: “Harbhajan knows what his country means to him and doesn’t want to explain an act of humanity. He lives for India and will die for India. His country will always come first. Whenever he has played cricket, he did it with his heart. And everyone knows what India means to him.”

She continued, “This goodwill gesture was to help Afridi, with whom they have played cricket and have years of friendship. Afridi is doing his bit for his country. They tried spreading the word to their fans all over the world, inspiring more people to support his good work.”

“Let’s not bring religion or anything else into this. Even the virus isn’t making any discrimination. They would’ve done the same if anyone from any of the other teams like West Indies or England would’ve sought help,” Geeta added.

Later in May, when Afridi while speaking to the people of Azad Kashmir, strongly criticised Indian Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, for deploying forces in Kashmir and making it a living hell for Muslims, Yuvraj expressed his disappointment at his comments and regretted extending his support.

Really disappointed by @SAfridiOfficial‘s comments on our Hon’b PM @narendramodi ji. As a responsible Indian who has played for the country, I will never accept such words. I made an appeal on your behest for the sake of humanity. But never again.

Jai Hind 🇮🇳

— Yuvraj Singh (@YUVSTRONG12) May 17, 2020

Harbhajan passed similar comments, saying that he has “no relation or tie-up with Shahid Afridi from here on”.

“This is very upsetting what Shahid Afridi has come up with, talking ill about our country and our Prime Minister. This is just not acceptable,” Harbhajan had said. “To be honest, he [Afridi] asked us to make an appeal for his charity. In good faith, we did it for humanity and for the people suffering due to the coronavirus.”

“All I have to say is we have nothing to do with Shahid Afridi. He has no right to speak ill against our country and he should stay in his country and limits,” he added. “One person asks me to make an appeal for the sake of humanity, and I did my bit. That was it. I have no relation or tie-up with any Shahid Afridi from here on.”

#AskAfridi

In the interactive Twitter session, Afridi answered a variety of question from his fans during the session, ranging from his thoughts on Kashmir to his favourite players and cricket memories and how he is keeping himself busy during the pandemic. Check out some of his responses below:

Let the Kashmiris decide…

— Shahid Afridi (@SAfridiOfficial) July 29, 2020

Heaven

— Shahid Afridi (@SAfridiOfficial) July 29, 2020

Lara and de Villiers

— Shahid Afridi (@SAfridiOfficial) July 29, 2020

Kanpur 2005, Chennai Test and special one Asia Cup match in Dhaka

— Shahid Afridi (@SAfridiOfficial) July 29, 2020

Can't describe in words

— Shahid Afridi (@SAfridiOfficial) July 29, 2020

Hopefully Babar will become as good as the other legends

— Shahid Afridi (@SAfridiOfficial) July 29, 2020

All four are best players when I become the selector I'll tell you 😊

— Shahid Afridi (@SAfridiOfficial) July 29, 2020

Wasim Bhai

— Shahid Afridi (@SAfridiOfficial) July 29, 2020

Hope not out!

— Shahid Afridi (@SAfridiOfficial) July 29, 2020

Abdul Qadir

— Shahid Afridi (@SAfridiOfficial) July 29, 2020

I rate Dhoni a bit higher than Ponting as he developed a new team full of youngsters

— Shahid Afridi (@SAfridiOfficial) July 29, 2020

Viv Richards

— Shahid Afridi (@SAfridiOfficial) July 29, 2020

Gymming 💪

— Shahid Afridi (@SAfridiOfficial) July 29, 2020

Sindhi Biryani – aaj kal

— Shahid Afridi (@SAfridiOfficial) July 29, 2020

Age is just a number my friend 😊

— Shahid Afridi (@SAfridiOfficial) July 29, 2020

Khoobsurat Insaan, lekin koi bhee insaan fareshta nahi hota

— Shahid Afridi (@SAfridiOfficial) July 29, 2020

Gladiator

— Shahid Afridi (@SAfridiOfficial) July 29, 2020

Afridi also answered some questions on whether he will be joining politics.

My belief is to serve people in any capacity

— Shahid Afridi (@SAfridiOfficial) July 29, 2020

Never!

— Shahid Afridi (@SAfridiOfficial) July 29, 2020