Afghanistan pacer Naveen-ul-Haq got into a heated argument with Virat Kohli during the IPL 2023 match between Lucknow Super Giants and Royal Challengers Bangalore. This incident marked the beginning of a series of unfortunate events that affected the course of the match and continued until the post-match presentation. The cause of the argument is unknown, and it is unclear who initiated the confrontation. However, this was not the first time Naveen had been involved in such a verbal altercation with an opposition player on the field.
Faceoff against Amir and Afridi
The first instance occurred during the inaugural edition of the Lanka Premier League in 2020, where Naveen had a heated exchange of words with Mohammed Amir, followed by a confrontation with Shahid Afridi after the match. These incidents suggest that Naveen may have a history of getting into heated arguments with opposition players.
In the sixth match of the season, Galle Gladiators, led by Shahid Afridi, lost to Kandy Falcons by 25 runs. After the match, Kandy fast bowler Naveen-ul-Haq got into a heated argument with Gladiators’ pacer Mohammed Amir during the formal handshakes. Despite the intervention of Naveen’s teammates, the duo continued to exchange insults until the Afghan pacer joined the queue to shake hands with the rest of the Gladiators players.
As Naveen reached Afridi, who was smiling and congratulating the opposition players, the former Pakistan skipper's expression immediately turned to anger. It is unclear what Afridi said, but he may have asked Naveen what was wrong. Naveen also had the opportunity to express his grievances to Afridi, but the latter quickly moved past him to greet the other players.
The day after the incident, Afridi used social media to share that he had counseled Naveen about refraining from using abusive language. According to Afridi, respecting one's teammates and opponents is a fundamental aspect of the game's spirit.
In response to Afridi's tweet, Naveen disclosed that Amir had made a statement about Afghans always remaining subordinate to Pakistanis. This comment did not sit well with Naveen because it was not only an insult to the people of Afghanistan but also to him personally.
Naveen-ul-Haq was fined 50% of his match fees for breaching the Code of Conduct. Naveen-ul-Haq admitted to the Level 1 offence under Article 2.21 of the IPL Code of Conduct. Alongside Naveen, both Virat Kohli and Gautam Gambhir were fined 100% of their match fees.
