World Cup curfew: Night out costs Afridi, seven others

Published February 12, 2015
Shahid Afridi. — Reuters/File
Shahid Afridi. — Reuters/File

SYDNEY: Eight Pakistan players, including maverick former captain Shahid Afridi, have been fined for breaching a team curfew ahead of their crucial World Cup game against India, sources said on Thursday.

They have also been warned that a repeat offence will see them kicked out of the tournament which starts on Saturday.

“Eight of the Pakistan players, which also included former captain Shahid Afridi and opener Ahmed Shehzad, were fined 300 Australian dollars (US $230) after they came late to their Sydney hotel on Sunday,” sources in the Pakistan team said on condition of anonymity.

The team management, headed by manager Naveed Cheema, a former military man, claimed the players arrived 45 minutes late after a night out.

“These players went with their friends for dinner but came back late,” said a team source. The players are understood to have apologised and have promised not to repeat the offence.

Team management have told the players that if such a breach was repeated they will be sent home on the first available flight.

Pakistan are placed in Group B of the 14-team World Cup which starts in New Zealand and Australia from Saturday.

Pakistan play their first group game against arch-rivals and title-holders India in Adelaide on Sunday. Pakistani players have a history of off-field discipline problems.

Opinion

Editorial

When medicine fails
Updated 18 Nov, 2024

When medicine fails

Between now and 2050, medical experts expect antibiotic resistance to kill 40m people worldwide.
Nawaz on India
Updated 18 Nov, 2024

Nawaz on India

Nawaz Sharif’s hopes of better ties with India can only be realised when New Delhi responds to Pakistan positively.
State of abuse
18 Nov, 2024

State of abuse

DESPITE censure from the rulers and society, and measures such as helplines and edicts to protect the young from all...
Football elections
17 Nov, 2024

Football elections

PAKISTAN football enters the most crucial juncture of its ‘normalisation’ era next week, when an Extraordinary...
IMF’s concern
17 Nov, 2024

IMF’s concern

ON Friday, the IMF team wrapped up its weeklong unscheduled talks on the Fund’s ongoing $7bn programme with the...
‘Un-Islamic’ VPNs
Updated 17 Nov, 2024

‘Un-Islamic’ VPNs

If curbing pornography is really the country’s foremost concern while it stumbles from one crisis to the next, there must be better ways to do so.