Too little, too early
Pakistan star all-rounder Shahid Afridi has criticised the ICC
for holding the next Twenty20 World Cup just nine months later and
ignoring him for the 'Player of the Tournament' award.
Afridi, who was instrumental in Pakistan's T20 World
Cup triumph in England, said the ICC's decision to hold third edition
of the tournament in 2010 has left the team with very little time to
celebrate their victory.
"There is just no proper gap between the two
tournaments for us to enjoy our victory. I don't know why the ICC has
done this, but to me it seems cricket today is more like a business
than a sport," Afridi, who won the man-of-the-match award in both the
semifinal and final, said on his return home on Wednesday.
The 29-year-old all-rounder also admitted that in
spite of his stellar performances in the T20 World Cup, he was little
disappointed at not winning the player of the tournament award.
Although Afridi was the star for Pakistan in both
the semi-final and final against South Africa and Sri Lanka with
back-to-back half centuries and wickets, Tillekaratne Dilshan bagged
the award with his commendable show with the bat.
"I was not expecting them (ICC) to ignore me for
the player of the tournament award. I had scored over 160 runs and
taken 11 wickets. My fielding was also top class and I was surprised
when I didn't win this award," he said.
Afridi, however, praised Dilshan for his
performance and said the Sri Lankan opener's famous scoop shot over the
wicketkeeper's head was a joy to watch.
Afridi said he was delighted to play a part in the
victory, which brought smiles back to the faces of Pakistani people who
have been living under constant threat of terror.
"I dedicate this victory to the displaced and
troubled people of Swat in particular. I am happy that we could bring
some joy to our people who deserved it after bearing so much," he said.
The flamboyant right-hander also attributed his success with the bat to the confidence shown in him by captain Younis Khan.
"The captain (Younis) showed confidence in me when
I told him I wanted to bat at number three. But when I got the chance I
also knew my self respect and reputation was at stake. I knew this was
my big chance to finally come good as a batsman and I am happy that I
was able to do it for the team and my country," he said.
Afridi also lauded Younis for his inspirational
captaincy. "He (Younis) took all seniors into confidence all the time.
At team meetings the seniors decided that whatever our differences
were, on the field we must remain united and play for the country," he
said.
One fully supports Shahid Afridi's call to ICC for better scheduling of their major events. There's no doubt about it that there maybe an overkill of the T20 version. But Afridi bhai has a different reason. It seems nine months is too short a period for Shahid Bhai to celebrate victory. But nine months to enjoy victory?? One is getting visions of Afridi sleeping with the trophy in his bed every day. Or is he going to use it as a beer mug to drink coffee? Coming from a player who was playing IPL 2008 for the Deccan Chargers, earning a decent packet of money, talking about Cricket being turned into a business more than sport, is a bit rich.
Arrogance is just a step away from self confidence and Afridi has taken many a step in that direction in his chequered career. Ironically the arrogance was carried off without much substance in most cases. The tag 'potentially devastating' was used for as many years as he remained 17. His run-ins with national captains, coaches, and opposition players have always been laughed away under some pretense or the other. A VVS was not spared either last year in a completely unprovoked attack from Shahid bhai. Coming on the back of his brilliant performances in IPL 2008, they seemed a bit curious.
His 'surprise' on not being given the man of the tournament is even more funny. He was surely a candidate for the title, no doubt about it. But when the title says 'Man of the tournament', it means that one has to be consistently contribute to a team's performances. People may be saying that performing at the big stage is what separates 'great' players from the 'also rans', but you get a MoM for that. Dilshan had single handedly (well, almost) guided Sri Lanka to the finals and very few cricket lovers will have a strong objection to his ownership of the title.
His other remarks about Indians being reluctant to play them and the rationale for other teams to visit Pakistan were the side dishes of this Pehawari Kebab of an interview.
“I think our performance is a lesson for other teams. We are world champions and I hope teams will now come to Pakistan.”
One believes that it's high time for Shahid bhai to show some maturity. The considerable restraint that he showed in his batting approach in the semi finals and the finals, needs to be brought into play in his public utterances too.
Till then, one can do nothing but sit back, relax and enjoy the Afridi show.