Live Score
Cricket Teams
Cricket PlayersWatch: Virat Kohli's reaction after spotting injured Shaheen Shah Afridi is pure gold
India's Virat Kohli shook hands with Pakistan left-arm seamer Shaheen Shah Afridi and wished him a speedy recovery from the injury that he suffered in the second Test against Sri Lanka in Galle. The video has won the hearts of India and Pakistan cricket fans.
The camaraderie between India and Pakistan cricketers has been one of the biggest talking points in the lead-up to this year's Asia Cup. While there has been a lot of talk about the India-Pakistan rivalry ahead of the big-ticket encounter on Sunday in Dubai the cricketers from both sides have shown nothing but respect and appreciation for each other. It started with Virat Kohli's meeting with Pakistan captain Babar Azam and batting coach Mohammad Yousuf ahead of India's first training session at the ICC Academy in Dubai and it has now continued with Pakistan pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi's meeting with noted Indian cricketers on Thursday.
Afridi was sitting on the sidelines with support on his right leg, the injury for which he will not be able to play in the Asia Cup when India leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal approached him, asked about his well being and had a candid chat.
Next in line was Virat Kohli. He too shook hands with the left-arm seamer and wished him a speedy recovery from the injury that he suffered in the second Test against Sri Lanka in Galle. The video, which is now viral, has won the hearts of India and Pakistan cricket fans.
Watch: Virat Kohli's reaction after meeting an injured Shaheen Shah Afridi
Rishabh Pant and KL Rahul too had a word with Afridi and enquired about his recovery from injury. Afridi mentioned to a number of Indian cricketers that he is most likely to return in the T20 World Cup in Australia this year.
The left-arm seamer was one of the main reasons behind Pakistan's first-ever victory over India in a World Cup match in any format last year in Dubai. Afridi had accounted for Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul in the powerplay and then dismissed Virat Kohli towards the end of India's innings to really dent their progress.
India too will be without their ace seamer Jasprit Bumrah, who along with Harshal Patel has been ruled out of the Asia Cup due to injuries. India's pace attack will be led by Bhuvneshwar Kumar while Pakistan's hopes will be pinned on Haris Rauf.
India and Pakistan are placed in Group B and there is a possibility that these two sides will qualify easily - the third team in their group is Hong Kong - and meet again in the super 4 stage of the tournament.
