Shahid Afridi urges Indian PM Narendra Modi to let India-Pakistan cricket happen amid Asia Cup 2023 venue debacle

Narendra Modi, Shahid Afridi (Image Credit: Twitter)

Former Pakistan skipper Shahid Afridi has freshened up the talks of India-Pakistan cricket in midst of the Asia Cup 2023 venue controversy. Over the past few months, the India and Pakistan Cricket Boards have been having a disagreement over the venue of the Men's Asia Cup 2023. Pakistan wants to stage the tournament in their homeland. On the other hand, India wants the tournament to be shifted to a neutral venue.

They have insisted that the Indian government hasn't allowed the team to visit Pakistan. This led to verbal quarrels between both boards in the last few months. In midst of uncertainty over the matter, Afridi addressed the Indian PM, Narendra Modi must let India and Pakistan play each other.

“I will request Modi sahab to let cricket happen between both countries,” Afridi made the statement while on the sidelines of the Legends League Cricket (LLC) match in Qatar.

Afridi said when asked if he thought the PCB (the Pakistan Cricket Board) was weak, “I would not say weak, but some answers came from the front (Indian Cricket Board) as well”.

There are no security issues in Pakistan: Shahid Afridi

2009 20-20 World Cup winner added that he has a lot of friends from the India Cricket Team. He further added that security isn't a concern in Pakistan citing England, Australia, and New Zealand visiting the Asian country in the last 12 months.

“I still have friends in the Indian team when we meet, we discuss, the other day I met Raina and I asked for a bat, he gave me a bat,” he says.

“As far as the security concern in Pakistan is concerned, we had many international teams traveling here recently. We used to face security threats from India as well, but if permission is received from the government of both the countries then the tour will happen. If the tour doesn’t happen, we will give those people a chance. All they want is that there should be no cricket between them,” Afridi said.