Former leg spinner Danish Kaneria has made relevations on former Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi persistently pressuring him to convert to Islam.
Kaneria, who is the highest wicket-taking spinner in Pakistan’s cricket history, opened up on the discrimination he faced during his playing days.
Kaneria has played 61 tests for Pakistan from 2000 to 2010 and is the only second Hindu Cricketer after Anil Salpat to play for the national team. He has 261 wickets in tests at an economy rate of 3.07 with 15 five-wicket hauls to his name.
The leg-spinner said that he went to the United States after not receiving respect in Pakistan.
“We all gathered here and shared our experiences of how we were treated in Pakistan. We have faced discrimination, and today, we raised our voices against it,” said Danish Kaneria.
He also added that due to discrimination, he career was destroyed. He moved to US due to the issues and revealed this to raise awareness.
“I, too, have faced a lot of discrimination, and my career was destroyed. I did not receive the respect and equal value I deserved in Pakistan. Because of this discrimination, I am in the US today. We spoke to raise awareness and let the USA know how much we have suffered so that action can be taken,” said Danish Kaneria.
During an interview in 2023, Danish Kaneria revealed that Afridi consistently urged him to embrace Islam, while former captain Inzamam-ul-Haq stood as the sole captain to back him.
“I was doing well in my career and was playing county cricket too. Inzamam-ul-Haq supported me a lot and was the only captain who did so.”
“Alongside him, Shoaib Akhtar. Shahid Afridi and many other Pakistan players troubled me a lot and didn’t eat with me. Shahid Afridi was the main person telling me to convert, and he did a lot of times. Inzamam-ul-Haq never used to talk that way,” Kaneria said.
In 2012, Danish Kaneria was banned for life after the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) found him guilty of spot-fixing.
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