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I Love Twenty20 Cricket, Says Star Batsman Afridi

Dubai — The recent episode which rocked Pakistan cricket after the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) heavily fined players and banned a few, seems to have had its impact.

It was clearly visible when Shahid Afridi was at the pre-match press conference of the Emirates Airlines Twenty20 tournament. Even before the press could ask Afridi any questions, his manager and organisers made it very clear to restrict the questions only about the tournament he is participating and nothing related to PCB or Pakistan cricket.

Unlike the usual charming Afridi who enjoys talking to the media, this time he looked to be in a hurry and finish off the interaction as early as possible.

Afridi was allowed to participate in this tournament only after the PCB gave him a special permission since the commitment with the Fly Emirates was done long ago. “I called up the Chairman (PCB) and took permission from him and he said ok since we had already committed to it,” Afridi said.

Already being named in the World Twenty20 squad, he is in the reckoning for the captaincy post. On the preparations for the big event in which Pakistan emerged triumphant in the previous edition, the all-rounder said: “I’m doing my physical training for now. I will be starting my bowling and batting sessions in a week’s time.”

Afridi said that one needs to adopt an aggressive approach in case one has to succeed in Twenty20 format. “You should be aggressive to play Twenty20 cricket. We have been playing the format for 10 years. So I love playing this format. Basically it depends on how much you enjoy the game.”

Noting that he was keen to play cricket anywhere in the world, Afridi said: “It promises to be a great weekend of Twenty20 action and I look forward to seeing Dubai’s cricket fans coming out to support us.”