“Come here, I will rip your neck off”: 5 major controversies in T20 World Cup history

The T20 World Cup 2022 is all set to get underway in Australia on Sunday, October 16. This year’s event will be the eighth edition of the ICC tournament, which began in 2007 in South Africa. Twelve teams took part in the inaugural competition, with Team India emerging triumphant by defeating Pakistan in a thriller of a final in Johannesburg.

Pakistan and England won the two subsequent editions of the T20 World Cup in 2009 and 2010, respectively. West Indies lifted the first of their two titles in 2012, beating Sri Lanka in the final in Colombo. While Lanka failed to go all the way at home, they clinched the crown in 2014 in Bangladesh, defeating the Men in Blue by six wickets in the final in Dhaka.

West Indies won their second T20 World Cup crown by defeating England in the 2016 final in Kolkata. Last year, Australia emerged champions for the first time, getting the better of New Zealand by eight wickets in the summit clash in Dubai.

Apart from cricketing action, the T20 World Cup has also been in the news for a few controversies over the years. We look back at five of the big ones.

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#5 Quinton de Kock’s refusal to take the knee

Quinton De Kock takes the knee ahead of the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2021 match between South Africa and Sri Lanka. Pic: Getty Images

A controversy erupted during the T20 World Cup last year when South Africa’s keeper-batter Quinton de Kock opted out of his team’s group clash against West Indies, citing “personal reasons”. It was later learned that the senior Proteas batter was not keen on taking the knee, a symbolic gesture against racism.

Luckily for South Africa, the matter was sorted out soon enough. De Kock issued an apology by posting a statement on Twitter, confirming that he was ready to take the knee.

His statement read:

"I would like to start by saying sorry to my teammates, and the fans back home. I never ever wanted to make this a Quinton issue. I understand the importance of standing against racism, and I also understand the responsibility of us as players to set an example.

"If me taking a knee helps to educate others, and makes the lives of others better, I am more than happy to do so.”

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#4 When Afridi kicked up a storm with his “Pakistani cricketers are loved more in India” statement

Shahid Afridi reacts after taking a wicket against India. Pic: Getty Images

Former Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi is known for his controversial statements as his cricketing exploits. He was at it again during the 2016 T20 World Cup, which was played in India.

At a press conference in Kolkata, he claimed that he received more love in India than in Pakistan. He commented:

"I've not enjoyed playing anywhere as much as I have in India. I'm in the last stage of my career and I can say that the love I have got in India is something that I will always remember.

"We have not got this much love even from Pakistan. There are cricket-loving people here, much like in Pakistan. Overall, I've enjoyed a lot playing in India in my cricketing career."

The statement obviously did not go down well in Pakistan. An advocate even served a legal notice to him for “committing treason” and “hurting sentiments” of the people of the country.

Later, issuing a clarification, Afridi said that he did not intend to hurt Pakistan fans and only wanted to give a positive message through his statement.

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#3 David Warner’s bizarre six off Mohammed Hafeez

Screenshots of David Warner hitting a six off Mohammad Hafeez during the second semi-final of the ICC T20 World Cup 2021.

Australian opener David Warner found himself at the center of a controversy when he slammed a six off Mohammad Hafeez off a ball that bounced twice before the left-hander could get bat on it. The bizarre incident occurred during the semi-final match of the T20 World Cup last year in Dubai.

Australia were chasing 177 for victory. Hafeez came in to bowl the seventh over. The first ball seemed to have slipped out of his hands and gently lobbed towards Warner. The Australian opener had the option of not hitting the delivery, but he decided to go after it and ended up slamming it over the ropes.

To make matters worse for Pakistan, the umpire called it a no ball.

There were mixed reactions to Warner’s act. While some supported his decision, a few others questioned his sportsman spirit.

The man himself defended his choice. In a Twitter interaction, Warner explained:

“It wasn’t by mistake. He (Hafeez) was trying to see what I was going do. So, he was going bowl and stop, to see whether I was coming down the wicket, to see what I was going do. That’s what happened.”

Warner was dismissed for 49 in the chase, but Matthew Wade’s whirlwind 41* off 17 put Australia in the T20 World Cup 2021 final.

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#2 Andrew Symonds sent home from 2009 T20 World Cup

Former Australian all-rounder Andrew Symonds had a troubled international career. Pic: Getty Images

During the 2009 T20 World Cup that was held in England, former Australian all-rounder Andrew Symonds was sent home for disciplinary reasons. The late Aussie, who had his fair share of controversies during his playing career, broke team rules related to alcohol and other issues.

Announcing the decision, then-Cricket Australia (CA) chief executive James Sutherland said that Symonds was stood down with regret because he broke a number of team rules in a period of 24 hours. The maverick cricketer was earlier sent home from a tour of Bangladesh after he opted to go fishing instead of attending a team briefing.

He was also fined for a drunken radio interview in January 2009. Before that, he turned up drunk ahead of Australia’s infamous 2005 loss to Bangladesh in an ODI match.

In a tragic turn of events, the former Aussie all-rounder died in a car crash in May this year at the age of 46.

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#1 Yuvraj-Flintoff face-off in Durban

Yuvraj Singh (left) and Andrew Flintoff.

The 2007 T20 World Cup match between India and England in Durban is remembered for Yuvraj Singh clobbering Stuart Broad for six sixes in an over. However, it was the batter’s altercation with Andrew Flintoff that triggered Yuvraj’s brutal assault.

The former India batter smacked the England all-rounder for two fours, which agitated Flintoff. He said something nasty to Yuvraj, and poor Broad was on the receiving end of the southpaw’s anger.

On the ‘22 Yarns with Gaurav Kapur’ podcast, Yuvraj recalled his tussle with Flintoff. He revealed:

“I remember I hit two good boundaries off Flintoff which he obviously didn’t like. He said something to me and I said something back. He told me, ‘Come here, I will rip your neck off’. So I said, ‘You know where my bat would go’. It was quite a serious fight at that time. I just felt like I wanted to hit every ball out of the park.”

After smashing every ball of the over bowled by Broad over the ropes, Yuvraj looked in the direction where Flintoff was fielding and gave him a cheeky smile.

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