An important member of the Pakistan cricket team for as long as 10 years, Danish Kaneria has now admitted that he had to face discrimination while he was in the national team. for the unversed, the revelation was made by Kaneria’s former national teammate and pace bowler Shoaib Akhtar.
Akhtar had revealed in a TV interview to a Pakistan news channel how Danish was mistreated by fellow Pakistan players. After Akhtar’s interview, even Danish has come out in the public domain and accepted the same.
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Kaneria confirmed Akhtar’s statement
39-year-old Danish Kaneria agreed to Akhtar’s statement. The former international leg spinner stated that within the Pakistan national team, he was discriminated against because he belonged to a minority religion. However, he urged the people to not politicise the issue but sought the help of his Prime Minister Imran Khan.
Kaneria’s ancestors were from Gujarat
Danish Kaneria was born on 16 December 1980 to a Gujarati family in Karachi. His ancestors were natives of Surat in Gujarat. However, Danish’s parents shifted to Pakistan during the entire partition episode and it was here that he grew up. Danish gradually took interest in the sport of cricket and decided to make a career out of it. Although it was difficult for him to get a place in the national team, Rashid Latif helped him through his struggling phase and played a crucial role in his cricketing career.
Second and the last Hindu Cricketer to play for Pakistan national team
Danish made his debut for Pakistan against England in 2000. He represented his country for 10 long years in which he played 61 Tests and picked up 261 test wickets. However, a spot-fixing involvement led to a premature end of his career as he was sentenced to life –ban.
Who was the first Hindu to play for Pakistan?
The first Hindu to represent Pakistan in Cricket was Anil Dalpat, who also happens to be a cousin of Kaneria. Anil Dalpat made his debut in 184 and played as many as 9 Tests and 15 ODIs for Pakistan. He was a wicketkeeper-batsman and last represented the Pakistan Cricket team in 1986.
