SYLHET – Pakistan bowling coach Umar Gul has broken his silence over reports of a supposed altercation with Shaheen Shah Afridi, clarifying that the incident was misunderstood.
Speaking at a press conference, Umar Gul said he woke up to see a social media post tagging him and claiming that Shaheen Afridi was not listening to the coach’s instructions.
He explained that the incident took place when Hasan Ali suffered an injury and was lying on the ground, while Shaheen Afridi was seated outside the field. According to Gul, Shaheen usually tapes his knee during bowling spells, and they were discussing that matter at the time.
Umar Gul said he was having a routine conversation with Shaheen about being asked to go outside when Sarfaraz Ahmed approached them and informed them that Hasan Ali had suffered a head injury.
The bowling coach said the situation was wrongly portrayed as a fight, whereas nothing of that sort had happened. He added that the reaction seen in the viral video was simply a natural response, and he was unaware that the cameras were recording the moment.
It is worth mentioning that after the video went viral on social media, users speculated that there had been a heated exchange between the coach and the player.
