Former Pakistan speedster Shoaib Akhtar and ex-Afghanistan Cricket Board chief executive Shafiq Stanikzai were involved in a heated argument on social media after unruly scenes broke out between fans of both teams here on Wednesday.
Pakistan and Afghanistan played out a thrilling Super Four stage clash in the ongoing Asia Cup. Pakistan pacer Naseem Shah hit back-to-back sixes off the first two balls of the final over as the Men In Green sealed a one-wicket win to assure themselves a place in the final alongside Sri Lanka.
However, after the match, the Sharjah Cricket Stadium witnessed unsavoury scenes as Afghanistan fans, disappointed with the loss, were seen breaking chairs and assaulting Pakistan supporters.
In a video shared by Akhtar on Twitter, Afghan fans can be seen breaking chairs. "This is what Afghan fans are doing. This is what they've done in the past multiple times. This is a game and it's supposed to be played and taken in the right spirit. @ShafiqStanikzai your crowd & your players both need to learn a few things if you guys want to grow in the sport," Akhtar wrote in a Twitter post.
To this, Shafiq Stanikzai replied by saying, "You can't control the emotions of the crowd and such incidents happened in the world of cricket multiple times, you should go ask Kabir Khan, Inzamam Bhai and @iRashidLatif68 how we treated them. Am giving you an advice, next time baat ko nation pe mat lena."