Babar Azam breaks silence on rumoured war of words between him and pacer Shaheen Afridi 

Captained by the World No. 1 ODI batter, Pakistan entered the 2023 Asia Cup as favourites with the tag of the world's best in the 50-over format. They had a great start to the tournament with a dominant win over Nepal, followed by a scintillating bowling performance in the rain-curtailed encounter against India. However, Babar Azam and Co. had to exit the premier Asian tournament on a disappointing note after their loss to Sri Lanka in the Super Fours.

After their unsuccessful outing in the continental event, rumours emerged that Pakistan skipper and pace spearhead Shaheen Shah Afridi got into a verbal altercation in the dressing room meeting. According to reports, after their 2-wicket loss to Sri Lanka in a nail-biting thriller, Babar expressed his displeasure with the performance of their senior players.

This did not sit well with Shaheen, who asked the No. 3 batter not to generalise and appreciate at least those who did well. Not liking the way Shaheen interrupted, Babar replied that he is well aware of who is doing well and who's not, reports said.

The entire team is like a family: Babar Azam 

Meanwhile, ahead of the Pakistan team's departure to India for the 2023 ODI World Cup, Babar asserted that there was no "ill will" in the dressing room and it was just a normal discussion as they usually do after every match. He added that the team is like a family and everyone has mutual love and respect for each other.

"There is no ill will in the dressing room. There are discussions after every loss but they get twisted into something else entirely. The entire team is like a family and there is love and respect there," Babar said at a media conference on Tuesday.

On the other hand, some pictures have been doing the rounds on social media recently complimenting Pakistan batting great's remark. Star pacer Shaheen got married to former Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi's daughter on September 20, and Babar was also present for the intimate ceremony along with a few notables of Pakistan cricket. Amid reports of a rift between Babar and Shaheen, the two were seen hugging each other with all smiles.

Babar also took to his X (formerly known as Twitter) account to wish his teammate “congratulations” along with their picture. The left-arm pacer had also posted a photo with Babar with the caption "Family".