'Shahid Afridi has eaten dog meat' - Irfan Pathan recalls heated conversation from 2006 Pakistan tour

Published - 16 Aug 2025, 14:40 IST | Updated - 16 Aug 2025, 15:05 IST

When the name of Irfan Pathan comes up, one of the most vivid memories about the former all-rounder is when he rattled the Pakistani top-order with a hat-trick in the first over of the Karachi Test during the 2006 tour. However, the same tour has been a memorable one for Irfan, not only for his brilliant spells with the ball, but the verbal encounters with star Pakistan player Shahid Afridi.

While the tour was ongoing, both the teams were travelling in the same flight from Karachi to Lahore. An in-flight verbal spat with between the top all-rounders of the arch-rivals meant that the journey to Lahore was going to be filled with heated moments. However, Irfan tackled the awkward situation thrown at him by Afridi. During a recent conversation, the Baroda-born revealed how the incident unfolded.

"During the 2006 tour, we were flying from Karachi to Lahore. Both teams were travelling together. Shahid Afridi came and put his hand on my head and messed up my hair. He asked me, 'How are you, kid?' I thought, since when did he become my father. He behaved like a child. I was neither talking to him nor saying anything. After this, Afridi said some bad things to me. His seat was near mine," he narrated during an interview with Lallantop.

A few time later, Irfan said that he went up to Abdul Razzaq, another all-rounder from Pakistan and part of the squad on that tour. Irfan asked the kinds of meat available in the city, to which Razzaq replied courteously. The Indian cricketer then took that conversation to a whole different turn, taking a hilarious dig at how Afridi was behaving inside the plane.

"Later, Pakistan all-rounder Abdul Razzaq was sitting near me. I asked him what kind of meat is available here. He told me meat of different animals are available. So I asked whether dog meat is available. Hearing me, a surprised Razzaq questioned, 'Hey Irfan, why are you asking this?'

I replied that he (Afridi) has eaten dog meat, he has been barking for so long. After this, Afridi could not say anything. If he had said anything, I would have said, 'Look, he is barking more.' After this, he remained quiet for the entire flight. He understood from this incident that he would not be able to fight me verbally. That is why he never said anything to me again," the 40-year-old completed.

Notably, Irfan Pathan boasts a terrific bowling record against Shahid Afridi. The duo have faced off a total of 23 times in professional cricket, and the left-arm pacer has had Afridi's number a total of nine times. The competition hasn't always gone one way, though. Afridi has also batted at a fierce strike-rate of 149.35 against the Indian counterpart, hitting 28 fours and nine maximums in the process. Both have now retired from international cricket.