‘You guys are cheat’, Irfan Pathan talks about shocking anecdote from 2005 Test against Sri Lanka

Former India all-rounder and 2007 T20 World Cup winner Irfan Pathan has revealed a very interesting anecdote about ex Sri Lanka captain Kumar Sangakkara from their playing days. The incident dates back to 2005 when the two sub-continent rivals were taking on each other in a three-match Test series on Indian soil.

Irfan Pathan was still quite new to the international arena, having made his debut only three years before that match, but Kumar Sangakkara had already become a mainstay in the Sri Lankan team. The incident unfolded in the second Test in Delhi where the hosts secured a 188-run win.

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During India’s second innings with the bat, Irfan Pathan was asked to open alongside Gautam Gambhir, who got out cheaply for just 3 runs. However, Pathan was in a very good touch as he went on to smash 93 off 143 balls. It was during the all-rounder’s stay in the crease when Kumar Sangakkara sledged him and went as far as to say that Indians cheat.

To put this story into context, Irfan Pathan disclosed that when Sri Lanka went to bat after the first innings, the box of balls were changed by the Umpires, something that infuriated the Lankans, who were quite unhappy it.

Pathan revealed that Kumar Sangakkara was the most vocal out of all the Sri Lankans and when the former went to bat, Sangakkara launched a scathing verbal attack.

“There was a Test match in Delhi. I opened and made 93. After the first innings, when we went to bowl, the box of balls had changed or something like that happened, and Sri Lankan players were not happy. Sangakkara was the most vocal of all,” Irfan Pathan said in the Cheeky Singles show.

Pathan went on to narrate that he then hit Muttiah Muralitharan for back-to-back sixes and that further irritated the Sri Lankans. All of a sudden Kumar Sangakkara started sledging the India all-rounder, accusing the Indians of cheating.

Sangakkara went as far as to say that the parents of the Indian players teach them to cheat and Pathan did not hold back and replied in the best possible way.

“When I went to bat, I had zero idea what had happened; I was asked to open. I hit Muralidharan for two sixes. If he is getting hit for sixes with the new ball, it means you have derailed the opposition’s planning a bit. Suddenly, Sangakkara started saying you guys cheat, your parents teach you all this and blah blah. He went personal, and I also answered back. He started it,” Irfan Pathan added.

Back to becoming friends in IPL

Irfan Pathan then talked about how the two cricketers eventually became good friends after they got drafted into the Kings XI Punjab in 2008.

“After the auction, I saw I would be playing with Sangakkara at Punjab. Now I was eating with his family, and I did not know what to do. I went and told him sorry. He also apologised, and then we became good friends. Emotions are high, and you always make mistakes. It matters how maturely you handle things,”