"Shehzad was targeted because of my liking towards him," says Shahid Afridi

Opening batsman Ahmed Shehzad has remained extremely vocal about his absence from the national team as of late. The latest controversy surrounds Shahid Afridi's comments surrounding Shehzad.

In his previous interviews, Shehzad had criticized former coaching staff and coaches for "spoiling and hurting" his career. The PCB Chairman, Ramiz Raja, termed his remarks as "pure frustration."

Pakistan's former World Cup-winning captain Shahid Afridi claimed that his support for Shehzad perhaps contributed to his image being tarnished.

“Ahmed was targeted because of me because I supported him a lot. I gave him a lot of chances, which turned out to be a negative thing for him when I left captaincy. I think people thought he was my favorite,” Afridi said.

“I supported him a lot because I wasn't finding an opener of his ability in Pakistan. He was performing as well. Obviously, he couldn't perform in all games but he was targeted because of me as well.”

Ahmed Shehzad was one of the first ones to refute Afridi's statements.

"Shahid Bhai, listen. I don't know why you said that. You've been an elder brother to me, you can say anything to me. Sometimes, it does hurt me, but you have always been an elder brother to me,” said the Pakistan player.

“I want you to score runs, and enjoy your life with your wife and kids. Allah has made life beautiful for you,” Afridi said, to which Shehzad replied, “I keep saying that. I want to score runs, but at least don't deny me the platforms where I can score. I will ask you when sides in PSL want to pick me, who comes in and says no? You tell me, where do I score runs? At my home?”

Former teammate of Shehzad, Kamran Akmal also claimed that the opening batsman was also denied entry to Pakistan's high-performance training camp ahead of the series against Sri Lanka.