Taliban have come with very positive mindset: Shahid Afridi

TWO weeks after Pakistan prime minister Imran Khan backed the Taliban that recaptured power in Afghanistan saying they broke the slavery mentality, another former Pakistan cricket captain Shahid Afridi has followed suit.

In a video shared by Pakistani journalist Naila Inayat recently, the former international cricketer was seen telling reporters that the Taliban have “come with a very positive mind”.

“They’re allowing ladies to work in various fields including politics,” the 41-year-old said, adding that the extremist group is also fond of cricket. He encouraged their involvement and said it would help cricket grow.

He was brutally trolled for his words.

The remarks from Afridi, who has scored more than 10,000 runs and taken nearly 550 wickets in international cricket in a career that spanned almost two decades and is reportedly approaching the end of his run in the Pakistan Super League Twenty20 tournament, came at a time when people are fleeing Afghanistan fearing atrocities under the Taliban rule.

His words also came days after devastating suicide attacks at the Kabul airport that left nearly 200 people dead, including 13 American security personnel.

Afridi’s opined about the Taliban’s “love for cricket” also days after the three-match one-day international series between Afghanistan and Pakistan were postponed indefinitely after talks between the cricket boards of the two countries agreed that logistical difficulties were making it hard for the Afghan squad to travel to Sri Lanka and the situation in Afghanistan would not have left the players in a sound mental state.

Pakistan had offered to host the series but Afghanistan declined citing the players’ mental health under the current conditions.