Pakistan cricketer Kamran Akmal has been well known for his ability behind the stumps, bat as well as for being a chatterer. An integral part of the Pakistan team that played regularly with India in the first decade of the 2000s, Akmal had many on-field face-offs, which turned into flashpoints, against his arch-rivals.
His widely known clash with former Indian cricketer Gautam Gambhir during the 2010 Asia Cup in Sri Lanka and again with fast-bowler Ishant Sharma during a T20 game in Bengaluru in 2012-13.
Speaking in a chat show ‘Cow Corner Chronicles’, Akmal shed light on the incidents. “It was all due to misunderstanding and happened in the heat of the moment then. Gautam and I are good friends because we have played a lot in ‘A’ cricket. We meet regularly, have food together,” Akmal said about his clash with Gambhir.
Furthermore, he stated that his altercation with Ishant happened because he could not understand what the Indian pacer had said.
“It was all due to me not understanding what he said. The same with Ishant at Bangalore. You know me I don’t say much on the field. Both Gautam and Ishant are very good boys. We respect them and they respect us. What happens on the field, stays there,” Akmal added.
The highlight of Kamran’s Test career was a battling century (133) against India in Karachi. Irfan Pathan had given India the perfect start by picking up a hat-trick in the first over. But Akmal and Abdul Razzaq helped Pakistan recover from 39/6 to post 245 in the first innings and that led the foundation of a heroic victory for the team.
Kamran, who featured in 53 Tests, 157 ODIs and 58 T20Is, last played for Pakistan in 2017 in the limited-overs format.
