Shaheen Afridi breaks silence for the 1st time after being tagged as the scapegoat of Pakistan debacle

Pakistan's ace left-arm pacer, Shaheen Afridi, is currently in Makkah to perform Umrah, amid the backlash after he was accused of misbehaving with the Pakistan cricket team coaches.

Notably, Umrah is a holy Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca, the holiest city for Muslims in the Hejazi region of Saudi Arabia. The main purpose of Umrah is to cleanse the soul of past sins and bring peace. However, Afridi went to Mecca after the Pakistan Cricket Team’s red-ball coach, Jason Gillespie, revealed that he would become a father soon.

Shaheen Afridi performs Umrah amid controversy over his alleged misbehavior with coaches

Gillispie announced after the controversy broke out about his reported misbehavior with the coaches including Gary Kirsten. Well, the Pakistani pacer embarked on the journey of Umrah, seeking spiritual fulfillment, and shared a picture of himself from the holy Islamic pilgrimage.

Well, the caption reads: "Alhamdulillah. Ka’abe ki ronak - Ka’abe ka manzar 🕋 Allahu Akbar - Allahu Akbar."

Here's Shaheen Afridi's post -

Alhamdulillah

Ka’abe ki ronak - Ka’abe ka manzar 🕋
Allahu Akbar - Allahu Akbar pic.twitter.com/Q94nqjM1RT

— Shaheen Shah Afridi (@iShaheenAfridi) July 14, 2024

Meanwhile, Shaheen Afridi’s wife, Ansha, daughter of the legendary all-rounder Shahid Afridi, is expecting her first child with the star Pakistani pacer. Recently, Jason Gillispie revealed that Afridi will miss the upcoming two-match Test matches against Bangladesh to be with his pregnant wife, as the speedster is all set to welcome his first child into their lives during the home series.

Well, Afridi has been in headlines for misbehaving with Pakistan’s white-ball head coach Gary Kirsten, captain Babar Azam, and other coaches Azhar Mahmood and Mohammad Yousuf during the team’s tour of Ireland and England and during the T20 World Cup 2024.

However, Shaheen has not reacted to the claims; he has given them silent treatment. The star speedster posted a video of himself bowling at the nets along with the caption, "Rise Above." And now, his spiritual journey has openly hinted that he doesn’t care about the critics, as he believes in God and nothing is hidden from him, targeting his critics.

PCB to decline NOCs to Shaheen Afridi for Canada's T20 league

On the other hand, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) will reportedly decline NOCs for several key players, including Babar Azam, Afridi, and Mohammad Rizwan, for upcoming franchise tournaments. Recently, the PCB refused an NOC to Naseem Shah for The Hundred 2024, citing workload management concerns.

It is being said that PCB's decision to decline NOCs to the top players aims to control the participation of centrally contracted players in overseas franchise leagues. Despite The Hundred 2024 and Global T20 League Canada 2024 not overlapping with Pakistan's international assignments, the PCB is focused on protecting the fitness and availability of its senior players.

According to ESPNCricinfo, PCB wants to ensure that Pakistan's key players remain fit and fresh for upcoming international fixtures with their strategic decision not to allow them to play in these leagues, prioritizing their performance in national colors.

Notably, the Pakistan team is set to host Bangladesh for a two-match Test series scheduled for August. These matches are part of the ongoing 2023–2025 World Test Championship (WTC) cycle. They recently suffered massive setbacks against the USA and India at the ICC T20 World Cup 2024.