‘Ishant Sharma Abused Me’, Ex Pakistani Spices Up The Heat With IND-PAK Memory Before Asia Cup
Former Pakistan wicketkeeper stated that India pacer Ishant Sharma abused him once during their last bilateral series a decade ago, escalating tensions ahead of the two teams' clash in the Asia Cup, which begins at the end of the month.
The last bilateral series between India and Pakistan was in 2012-13. Political difficulties between both countries have since taken precedence over the game, since they now only meet in ICC and ACC competitions. The event occurred during the first Twenty20 International in Bengaluru.
The quarrel began when Akmal was caught off a no ball by Sharma and declared not out. Akmal was out on the next ball after the Indian pacer provoked the opponent with some comments. Soon after, both players got into a violent disagreement, which was quickly resolved by the likes of then-captain MS Dhoni and Suresh Raina.
"Ishant was abusive to me. He said one harsh word and received 20 in return. I'm being completely honest here. The next day, we had a flight to Ahmedabad for a T20I match. "I was sitting with Virat (Kohli), Shoaib Malik, and Hafeez," Akmal explained.
"Someone inquired as to what exactly transpired between you two. I just said a nasty word to him, Ishant stated after bowling. "Everyone said you deserved it coming!" added Akmal, one of Pakistan's top wicketkeepers.
He also stated that if Dhoni and Raina had not intervened, the situation could have gotten much worse. "It turned out to be a serious situation." But, happily, Dhoni, the captain cool, intervened, followed by Raina.
"They knew who was at fault, so they settled the situation before it got worse." I could have been suspended for two matches and fined for five match fees. "It was pretty serious," continued Akmal, who represented Pakistan in 157 One-Day Internationals and 53 Tests.
At the conclusion of the match, both Akmal and Sharma were found guilty of Level 1 ICC Code of Conduct violations. While Akmal was fined 5% of his match fees, Sharma filed an appeal, and a hearing was held.
After reviewing the camera footage, it was discovered that Sharma was the one who started the whole affair and was penalised 15% of his match earnings. India and Pakistan will next meet in an Asia Cup encounter on September 2 in Sri Lanka.