'He Did A Lot Of Times': Former Pakistani Hindu Cricketer Danish Kaneria Reveals Shahid Afridi Asked Him To Convert

Former Pakistani cricketer Danish Kaneria, who also happens to be a Hindu, participated in the Congressional Briefing on 'Plight of minorities in Pakistan ' in Washington DC and revealed that his career was destroyed after facing a lot of discrimination inside the Pakistani team.

Kaneria made his debut for Pakistan in 2000 in the Test format and went on to play 61 long-format matches, picking 261 wickets at an economy rate of 3.07.

ALSO READ: Ex-Coach Mickey Arthur Backs Jason Gillespie's 'Clown' Attack on Aaqib Javed After CT 2025

My career was destroyed…: Danish Kaneria

While speaking to ANI in the Congressional Briefing, Kaneria said that he did not receive the 'respect and equal value' in Pakistan just because of his religion.

“I, too, have faced a lot of discrimination, and my career was destroyed. I did not receive the respect and equal value I deserved in Pakistan. Because of this discrimination, I am in the US today. We spoke to raise awareness and let the USA know how much we have suffered so that action can be taken," Kaneria told ANI.

The former cricketer made big allegations against Shahid Afridi and said that the former all-rounder used to 'trouble' him a lot. The 44-year-old added that Afridi was the main person telling him to convert to Islam.

ALSO READ: Bangladesh Veteran Mahmudullah Bids Farewell To International Cricket

“I was doing well in my career and was playing county cricket too. Inzamam-ul-Haq supported me a lot and was the only captain who did so. Alongside him, Shoaib Akhtar. Shahid Afridi and many other Pakistan players troubled me a lot and didn’t eat with me. Shahid Afridi was the main person telling me to convert, and he did a lot of times. Inzamam-ul-Haq never used to talk that way," he added.

Kaneria is the second Hindu cricketer to play for the Pakistan

Apart from Test cricket, Kaneria also played plenty of ODI matches for Pakistan. He made his debut in the 5-over format in 2001 against Zimbabwe and played 18 ODI matches, bagging 15 wickets at an economy rate of 4.79. Danish Kaneria is the second Hindu cricketer to play for the Pakistan Cricket Team after Anil Dalpat.