Waqar Younis tweets apology for 'Namaz' comment: I said something which I did not mean

Waqar Younis on Wednesday apologised for his communal remarks during a television show following Pakistans 10wicket victory over India in the ongoing T20 World Cup as the former Pakistan pacer was castigated on social media for his jihadi mindsetAppearing on the A Sports channel Younis had spoken about not just the blockbuster match but also how opener Muhammad Rizwan had taken time out during a break in the Pakistan innings to offer prayers on the groundWhat I liked the most was what Rizwan did Usne Hinduon ke beech mein khade ho ke Namaz padhi He stood in the middle of the ground and offered prayer in front of Hindus That was something very very special for me Younis had saidWaqars comments evoked a strong reaction in both the countries with former India pacer Venkatesh Prasad berating him for his remarksTakes jihadi mindset of another level to say this in a sport What a shameless man Prasad tweetedRealising his blunder Younis came out with an apolgyIn the heat of the moment I said something which I did not mean which has hurt the sentiments of many I apologise for this this was not intended at all genuine mistake Sports unites people regardless of race colour or religion he tweetedIn the heat of the moment I said something which I did not mean which has hurt the sentiments of many I apologise for this this was not intended at all genuine mistake Sports unites people regardless of race colour or religion apologies mdash Waqar Younis waqyounis99 October 26 2021He also apologised on the same channelCommenting on religious matters is something I never do as I respect every ones religion I got caught up in the moment and I didnt mean to hurt the sentiments of Hindus in Pakistan India and anywhere in the worldI was very excited after Pakistans win and those words came out in the heat of the moment I apologise for it he addedNoted cricket analyst Harsha Bhogle too expressed his disappointment For a person of Waqar Younis stature to say that watching Rizwan offering namaz in front of Hindus was very special to him is one of the most disappointing things I have heard A lot of us try hard to play such things down and talk up sport and to hear this is terrible Bhogle tweetedI really hope that a lot of genuine sports lovers in Pakistan are able to see the dangerous side to this statement and join in my disappointment It makes it very difficult for sports lovers like us to try and tell people it is just sport just a cricket matchIndia had frozen the bilateral cricket ties with Pakistan since the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks and not allowed players from the neighbouring country to compete in the muchpopular IPLThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for the dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the contents in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever