BCCI secretary slams Afridi for mentioning Kashmir in pre-match talk

When he came for the toss, former Pakistan captain Rameez Raja asked Afridi if he and his team had support from the spectators here, Afridi said that “a lot of people are here from Kashmir”. “Yes, a lot of people, a lot of people are here from Kashmir as well.

And I want to thank people of Kolkata, they really support us as well,” Afridi said at the Punjab Cricket Association stadium here just before the start of the Pakistan versus New Zealand group match.

BCCI secretary asks Shahid Afridi to steer clear of making any political statements https://t.co/Fu8Liwa1RK

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“It seems you have a bit of fan following here in Mohali,” Raja remarked after Afridi lost the toss. Pakistan looked to have support from the crowd as they cheered the boundaries scored by them. A lot of young crowd, including school students, have come from Jammu and Kashmir to watch the match.

Afridi had found himself in the centre of a controversy a few days back when he stated that the Pakistani cricket team got more love in India than in Pakistan. The statement draw backlash in  in Pakistan, especially from former cricketers like Javed Miandad.