NEW DELHI: The rivalry between former India all-rounder Irfan Pathan and former Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi is not new and has made headlines for years. Recently, Pathan revealed details of a heated exchange he had with Afridi during the 2006 tour of Pakistan — an incident that unfolded on a flight from Karachi to Lahore, with both teams travelling together.The confrontation began when Afridi approached Pathan on the flight, ruffled his hair, and called him a kid, sparking a verbal altercation between the two.Their rivalry went far beyond this incident, as Pathan enjoyed considerable success against Pakistan over the course of his career. He picked up 67 wickets across formats and scored 807 runs, including a century, against the arch-rivals. Pathan also famously dismissed Afridi for a golden duck in the 2007 T20 World Cup final, adding fuel to their on-field battles.“During the 2006 tour, we were travelling by flight from Karachi to Lahore. Both teams were travelling together. Afridi came and placed his hand on my head, messing up my hair. He asked me, ‘Aur bachche, kaisa hai?’ Main bola – ‘Tu kab se mera baap ban gaya? [How are you kid?’ I said, since when have you become my father?]. The childish behaviour was actually his. He was not my friend. After that, Afridi said some abusive words to me. His seat was right next to mine,” Pathan recounted the incident on Lallantop.The situation escalated when Pathan began chatting with Pakistani all-rounder Abdul Razzaq, who was seated beside him. Their conversation took an unexpected turn when Pathan asked about local meat varieties.“Abdul Razzaq was sitting with me then. I asked him what kind of meat is available here. He told me about the different kinds of meat. Then I asked if dog meat was available. Afridi was sitting right there. Razzaq was shocked to hear this and said, ‘Hey Irfan, why are you saying this?'” Pathan detailed.“Yeh (Afridi) dog ka meat khata hai, tabhi toh kab se bhauk raha hai. [I said, He (Afridi) has eaten dog meat, he has been barking for a long time]. After that, Afridi couldn’t say anything. Whatever he might have said, I would have just said, ‘Look, he is barking again.’ After this, he remained silent throughout the flight. From this incident, he understood that he could not win against me verbally. That’s why he never said anything to me again,” Pathan explained.
