Danish Kaneria has lashed out at former Pakistan teammate and captain Shahid Afridi over his recent speech against India and Prime Minister Narendra Modi during a visit to PoK. Kaneria, who is currently serving a lifetime ban from cricket, also slammed the all-rounder for betraying the friendship of Indian cricketers Harbhajan Singh and Yuvraj Singh, who had come forward to help the Afridi foundation and also urged to show support for the humanitarian work the foundation was doing. Both the cricketers later faced huge backlash for helping the former PAK captain after his ‘hate speech’ against India and PM Modi went viral on the internet. Shahid Afridi Visits PIA Plane Crash Site, Pakistan Fans Slam Cricketer for Being 'Publicity Hungry' (Read Tweets).

Kaneria said that Afridi must think first before speaking something as it might leave a bad impact on Pakistan cricket. “Shahid Afridi should think before speaking on any matter. If he wants to join politics then he should quit all ties with cricket. It is important to stay away from cricket if you are speaking like a politician. Speeches like these create a negative image of Pakistan cricket not only in India but also around the world,” Kaneria was quoted as saying by India TV. Danish Kaneria Accuses Shahid Afridi of Discrimination, Says Former Pakistan Captain Has Been ‘Against Him From Beginning’.

The leg-spinner, who represented Pakistan in 61 Test and 18 ODI matches and has taken 261 and 15 wickets respectively, also hit back at 40-year-old Afridi for taking help from Indian cricketers and then speaking evil against their nation and their Prime Minister.

“He appealed for help from them and after getting the help you end up saying things about their country and PM. What sort of friendship is this?” questioned Kaneria, Pakistan’s second-highest Test wicket-takers among spinners.

Shahid Afridi Recorded Making Hateful Speech Against India and PM Modi

Afridi during his recent visit to Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (PoK) with his foundation for distributing relief materials had made controversial statements against PM Modi blaming the Indian constitutional head for the situation in the valley. Twitterati ranted back at large with many Indian internationals, including Gautam Gambhir, Suresh Raina and Shikhar Dhawan, also slamming the former Pakistan cricketers for his remarks.

Meanwhile, Kaneria also vouched for both cricketing nations rebuild bilateral ties and resume cricketing ties. He urged both the Indian and Pakistan governments to solve the political differences and restart the bilateral cricketing ties.

“Cricketing ties between the two countries should resume. India and Pakistan have some political tension between them, which the government of both countries should resolve with dialogue so that cricket can return,” he said.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on May 26, 2020 02:09 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).