Karachi: Pakistani all-rounder Shahid Afridi says he tried to tamper with the ball during a match against Australia on Sunday because he was “frustrated” with his team’s performance.
“I am embarrassed -- I have made a mistake,” Afridi told Pakistan’s Geo TV after the International Cricket Council (ICC) banned him for two Twenty20 internationals for tampering with the ball during the fifth and final ODI against Australia in Perth.
“I was frustrated because the Pakistan team hasn’t won any match for quite some time,” said Afridi.
“I am not a fast bowler who would tamper the ball. I was just trying to help the bowler. There is no team in the world that doesn’t tamper with the ball but my approach was wrong.”
Afridi said his team was “very talented” and had “potential match winners” and he shouldn’t have embarrassed them and himself by his action.
“I shouldn’t have done this. I have been punished for my fault. I should learn a lesson out of this incident,” he said.
PTI reports match referee Ranjan Madugalle banned Afridi after holding a hearing on the complaint by on-field umpires.
Afridi, who led Pakistan in the final ODI in place of the unfit Mohammad Yousuf, was caught on camera chewing on one side of the ball while walking to the run up with bowler Mohammad Asif.
In 2005, Afridi was banned for twisting his spikes and trying to change condition of pitch during a Test match in Faisalabad against England. Trying to change the condition of the ball through illegal means prompts strict penalties from the ICC.
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