Afghanistan pacer Naveen-Ul-Haq has been in prime form for his country during their crunch tie against England at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi on Sunday, October 15. He bagged the important wicket skipper Jos Buttler, who scored 9 runs in 18 balls to leave the defending champions England reeling at 91/4 while chasing 285 for the victory.
It was a beautiful way to get the wicket of one of the best ODI batters in the current era. England's captain Buttler was diligently constructing his innings, looking for the right moment to unleash a big shot.
Seamer Naveen exploited this by delivering from a wide angle, sending the ball in with speed. Buttler, attempting a flick, inadvertently left a noticeable gap between his bat and pad. Taking advantage of the slight skid on the Kotla pitch, the ball zipped through this space, making its way to the stumps.
The moment left the whole stadium rapturous while Jos Buttler was walking back to the pavilion. Fans were chanting the name of hometown hero Virat Kohli, directing it at Naveen, but this time in a much more positive manner.
Earlier in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023, during a face-off between Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) and Lucknow Super Giants (LSG), tensions flared between Kohli and the Afghan pacer, Naveen. Additionally, Kohli was also caught in a heated exchange with LSG's mentor, Gautam Gambhir.
Post the altercation, Naveen was slapped with a 50% match fee fine for breaching a Level 1 offence as per Article 2.21 of the IPL Code of Conduct. Kohli and Gambhir, on the other hand, faced heftier penalties, each being fined 100% of their match fees for a Level 2 offence under the same article.
However, bygones became bygones during the India versus Afghanistan match. In the 26th over, Kohli and Naveen set aside their differences, sharing a hug in a heartfelt moment of sportsmanship. Recognising the crowd's heckling of Naveen, Kohli gestured to them to cease their taunts at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi. The audience acknowledged Kohli's plea, cheering him on as he continued his impressive knock.
Echoing a similar incident, Naveen's appreciation of Kohli mirrored that of Smith, who, at Kennington Oval, had urged the crowd to refrain from jeering him over the 'sandpaper gate' scandal which resulted in a year-long suspension by Cricket Australia (CA).
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