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The dispute between Afridi and Waqar erupted during Pakistan’s tour of West Indies in May earlier this year, which cost the former his captaincy role while the latter was seen stepping down from the coaching position after the tour of Zimbabwe in September.
In a protest to his snub as the limited overs captain of Pakistan team by the PCB management and the selectors, Afridi had announced retirement from International cricket. However, after Ijaz Butt and Waqar Younis departure from the Pakistan cricket setup, he decided to come out of his self imposed exile.
Afridi’s decision was welcomed by the Pakistan Cricket Board and the selectors, as he was called into the national squad for the limited overs squad of the UAE tour.
During the Pakistan-Sri Lanka neutral venue series, Waqar Younis was also there commentating for a leading sports channel. Waqar confirmed that he had met with Afridi in Dubai and after discussing the differences, they both had decided to bury the hatchet.
“Look when you work together like I and Shahid did you have such difference of opinions and disagreements and that is exactly what happened with us. But in the end what is important is that both of us just wanted to see Pakistan cricket do well,” said the former Pakistan pacer and captain while talking to the media reporters on Sunday .
“The differences were mirrored because Shahid gave some statements in the press and I responded. But now it is normal between us,” he added further.
Waqar also made it clear that he stepped down because of his health problem.
“It is a wrong impression that I made any excuse to step down and the real reason was that I was not happy with the board. The truth is doctors have advised me to stay away from jobs and work that carries lot of pressure as I am suffering from a liver ailment. That is why I resigned as coach.
“I am doing commentary now because it is not a pressure job and I can manage my health properly,” the former pacer said.
The former Pakistan skipper also praised Pakistan team’s performance against the world cup finalists during the recently concluded series.
“I think the hard work we put into rebuilding the side and encouraging the new players is now paying dividends…It just highlights the depth of talent we have in our cricket,” Waqar stressed.
“Imagine we are without Salman Butt, Mohammad Asif, Mohammad Aamer, Wahab Riaz, Kamran Akmal or Danish Kaneria and yet the team is doing well. It just highlights the depth of talent we have in our cricket,” he mentioned.
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