Former Pakistan batter Kamran Akmal expressed his admiration for Ex India cricketer and current head coach Gautam Gambhir, calling him his brother.
Notably, the India and Pakistan duo were engaged in many heated conflicts in their career on the field as their feelings got the better of them. Meanwhile, Akmal also praised the legendary former India captain MS Dhoni for his outstanding mentality and career.
The most well-known clash between the two came in during the Asia Cup 2010 match between India and Pakistan.
A past on-field confrontation between Akmal and his opponent was famously diffused by umpires, but the Pakistani cricketer has now revealed a more friendly side to his relationships with Indian counterparts.
Akmal described MS Dhoni as an individual with a unique mindset, revealing that despite being on-field opponents, they shared a warm relationship, often regaling in conversations about the more delicate points of wicketkeeping and batting.
"No doubt MS Dhoni is someone with a different mentality altogether, an absolute match-winner and he’s super calm. The way he played was fantastic, and had a fantastic career. We used to talk a lot about wicket-keeping, we used to talk a lot about batting and yeah, it was often good to talk to Dhoni,” Akmal told Cricblog.
Akmal further said he shares a good bond with Gambhir, calling him "like a brother."
"We share a good bond and are good friends. Even with Gautam Gambhir too. I mean me and Gautam are good friends too. I share a good relationship with him. He’s like my brother,” he added.