Lambasted by legendary cricketer Harbhajan Singh for making distasteful remarks against India pacer Arshdeep Singh, former Pakistan wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal recently had an animated chat with the spin-bowling icon on the sidelines of the World Championship of Legends tournament in Birmingham. Hours after the conversation became the talk of the town in the cricketing spectrum, Akmal opened up about his interaction with the leader of the India Champions side. Pakistan Champions outclassed India Champions led by Harbhajan in match No.8 of the tournament on Saturday.
For the unversed, Harbhajan called out Akmal for disrespecting Arshdeep’s religion during the 2024 edition of the ICC T20 World Cup. Roped in as a cricket pundit by a Pakistani channel, Akmal made a controversial remark and laughed about the unacceptable statement with other panellists. Last week, Akmal and Harbhajan featured in the World Championship of Legends game between India Champions and Pakistan Champions at Edgbaston.
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Speaking to Paktv.tv, Akmal shared details about his conversation with Harbhajan. The former Pakistan gloveman profusely apologised to Harbhajan about his on-air remark. “(Mujhse galti hui thi aur wahi ek baat chal rahi thi) I made a mistake, and that was the only topic being discussed. It was never my intention, and I can never think negatively about anyone’s religion. I have made that clear. It should be done because I am younger, they are seniors and a great off-spinner in Indian and world cricket,” Akmal said.
Akmal also mentioned Pakistan skipper Babar Azam facing the wrath of fans and pundits in his brief chat with Harbhajan in Birmingham. Earlier, Harbhajan had a hard time controlling his laughter when Pakistan’s Babar was pitted against legendary Brian Lara during an interaction. Akmal claimed that even Harbhajan agreed that former stars should avoid taking potshots.
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“Then we talked, and you might have seen Babar being mocked. No doubt, Babar is also a great batsman in Pakistan cricket; he has scored the most hundreds for Pakistan. No doubt, Brian Lara and Babar’s class don’t match, and they shouldn’t be compared. But as cricketers, we shouldn’t mock anyone. So I talked about it, and he (Harbhajan) also agreed that it shouldn’t have happened from his side either,” he added.
