Fawad Ahmed dealt as deftly and gracefully with the barbs flung his way by Doug Walters and David Campese as only a few hours earlier he had unpicked Tasmania’s batting, to send Victoria on their way to a five-wicket victory in the domestic limited overs competition at a windswept Bankstown Oval.
Speaking publicly for the first time since Walters and Campese harshly questioned his decision not to wear the alcohol sponsor’s logo on his Australian team shirt, Fawad said he had been gratified by the support he received from the Cricket Australia (CA) chief executive James Sutherland, and the national team.
He also said he bore no ill will towards Walters and Campese, who subsequently apologised for Twitter comments that included the words “tell him to go home”.
“I know they [Walters and Campese] are both legends and I still respect them,” Fawad said. “This is a free country, everyone has their own opinion and they can say anything. I didn’t agree with their opinion, that’s a different thing, but I will respect them, and in this country everyone has a right to free speech. They can say what they want to say, and on that occasion I think it is something new for a country like Australia.”
“We are not a big population-the Muslims, about 1.8%, so it was a different kind of thing, and CA was amazing, they really helped and supported me. This is an amazing country, if you are performing well in any field of life you will get a chance and people will definitely support you.”