Shahid Afridi “Bad Egg” Comment After India-Pakistan Match Cancelled! Who Was He Talking About?

July 21, 2025: The long-running argument over whether politics and sports should be kept apart was rekindled when Sunday’s highly anticipated India vs. Pakistan World Championship of Legends (WCL) match was called off. One Citing the recent Pahalgam terror attack and ongoing geopolitical tensions, a number of well-known Indian cricket players, including Shikhar Dhawan, Yuvraj Singh, Suresh Raina, and the Pathan brothers, withdrew from the match, leading to its cancellation.

Despite his own history of making contentious political remarks, Pakistan champion Shahid Afridi ironically emphasized the need to keep cricket out of politics.

Shahid Afridi, paradoxically, stressed the need to keep cricket away from politics, despite his own history of controversial political statements. “We are here to play cricket, and I’ve always said that cricket should be kept away from politics – it should move forward. A player should be a good ambassador, not a source of embarrassment for their country,” Afridi told reporters after the match was called off in Birmingham, England.

A visibly frustrated Afridi questioned India’s decision to pull out at the last minute. “We’ve come here to play cricket. If [India] didn’t want to play against Pakistan, they should’ve refused before coming here. But now you’ve arrived, even held practice sessions, and then suddenly changed everything in a single day,” he added.

Without explicitly naming him, Afridi seemed to criticize Shikhar Dhawan, calling him “one rotten egg that spoils everything for everyone else.” This came after Dhawan, on Saturday, reiterated his stance from May 11, stating on social media: “Jo Kadam 11 May ko liya, uspe aaj bhi waise hi khada hoon. Mera desh mere liye sab kuch hai, aur desh see badhkar aur kuch nahi hota. (The decision I took on 11 May, I still stand by it. My country is everything to me, and nothing is greater than the country).”

Afridi further emphasized the role of sports in fostering connections. “Sports bring people closer, but if politics gets involved in everything, how will we move forward? Until we sit together and discuss issues, nothing will improve – lack of communication only makes things worse,” he said. He concluded by asserting the supremacy of the game: “The game comes first. As a sport, cricket is the biggest thing. Bringing politics into it or an Indian cricketer saying he won’t play against Pakistan – then don’t play, just sit out. But sports is bigger, cricket is bigger, and it’s bigger than Shahid Afridi too.”⁴

The WCL organizers confirmed the cancellation, issuing an apology for “unintentionally causing discomfort” to Indian players and fans. They stated their original intent was to create “happy memories” by scheduling the match, inspired by recent India-Pakistan sporting events like a volleyball match and the prospect of the Pakistan hockey team touring India. However, the public backlash, fueled by the Pahalgam terror attack, led to the withdrawal of not just Dhawan but also Yuvraj Singh, Suresh Raina, Harbhajan Singh, and the Pathan brothers, forcing the cancellation.