[WATCH] 'Setting up Hookah for...'- Irfan Pathan's old remark on his India playing days goes viral

The former Indian pace bowling all-rounder, Irfan Pathan, didn’t turn up for the national side after October 2012 when he played his last fixture in the shortest format against South Africa in Colombo. In the ODI format, the left-arm pacer picked up a five-wicket haul against Sri Lanka in Pallekele in August 2012.

While the exact reasons for the absence of Irfan from the Blue Brigade aren’t known yet, many reckon that the former captain, MS Dhoni, was blamed along with the selectors, and the team management should be blamed for the poor management of handling the all-rounder. In 2020, Irfan opened up in a candid conversation that he had with Dhoni, and the video has gone viral on social media.

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“Yes, I asked him. During the 2008 Australia series, Mahi bhai's statement came out in the media that Irfan wasn't bowling well. So I thought I had bowled well throughout the series, so I went and asked Mahi bhai about this. Sometimes, the statements are twisted in the media, so I also wanted to clarify.” Pathan expressed in the old interview with SportsTak.

Watch: Irfan Pathan’s old remark on captain MS Dhoni during his playing days goes viral

Pathan ended with 100 Test wickets and 1105 runs in 40 innings, while in the 50-over format, he smacked 1544 runs and bagged 173 wickets. In the shortest format, the Baroda pacer collected 28 wickets and scored 172 runs in the 14 innings of the shortest format. He took a dig at Dhoni, saying that he wouldn’t be someone who sets up a hookah in someone’s room.

“Mahi bhai said, 'No, Irfan, there is nothing like this, everything's going as per plans.' When you get a reply like this, then you believe that, okay, you do what you can. Also, if you keep asking for explanations again and again after that, you hurt your self-respect.” The veteran all-rounder added.

“I don't have a habit of setting up a hookah in someone's room or talking about this. Everyone knows. Sometimes, if you don't speak about it, it's better. A cricketer's job is to perform on the field, and that is what I used to focus on.” Irfan Pathan concluded.