News Desk |
Former skipper of the Indian cricket team MS Dhoni was surprisingly welcomed with the chants of ‘Boom Boom Afridi’ when he arrived for a cricket match in Srinagar in Indian occupied Kashmir (IOK).
Crowds shouting Boom Boom Afridi at MS Dhoni when he attended a cricket tournament sponsored by the Indian army in north Kashmir #Cricket pic.twitter.com/lc2rFpxnGJ
— Saj Sadiq (@Saj_PakPassion) November 26, 2017
The Indian Army invited MS Dhoni on a trip to IOK. He attended the match as a chief guest on the request of Indian Army.
A video from the scene was widely circulated on social media. The video showed people present there greeted India’s most successful captain with the chants of ‘Boom Boom Afridi’.
Despite efforts of security personnel to diffuse the situation the disarray crowd kept chanting Afridi’s name with enthusiasm.
Later in the post-match ceremony, Dhoni was asked if India should resume its cricketing ties with Pakistan to which Dhoni replied, “An India-Pakistan cricket series is much more than just sport. It’s not a simple decision. It’s a diplomatic as well as political decision. It’s best left to the government to make that call.”
Read more: Shahid Afridi demands land for a cricket academy in Karachi
Dhoni apart from attending an Army-sponsored match in IOK met with young players and gave them fitness tips.
The political relations between India and Pakistan have remained hostile and that has not only overshadowed the cross-cultural contact but has suspended the cricketing relation between the two countries.
Both the countries last played a bilateral test series in 2007 and later played a bilateral ODI and T20 series in 2012. Since then they have met several times in various ICC tournaments. Pakistan this year beat Indian in the ICC Champion’s Trophy final in London.
Read more: International cricket back with a bang: Pakistan welcomes West Indies
Despite retiring from the national cricket team, Shahid Afridi enjoys immense popularity in Pakistan. Afridi has a massive fan following worldwide including across the border in India, IOK, Bangladesh and Afghanistan.