5 biggest controversies in T20 WC history

The T20 World Cup is one of the most loved tournaments of ICC after the ODI World Cup, and like other formats or series, many controversies have been seen in the T20 World Cup as well. 

1) Yuvraj Singh vs. Andrew Flintoff 

The 2007 World Cup winner and six-sixes hitter Yuvraj Singh had a heated conversation with former England cricketer Andrew Flintoff during a match in the T20 World Cup 2007.

It was the 19th over when legend Yuvraj Singh smashed Stuart Broad for six sixes; however, before this Indian all-rounder, Yuvraj Singh had a furious conversation with Andrew Flintoff when Yuvraj Singh smashed him for two boundaries in the 18th over. 

Yuvraj Singh shared the incident with Kevin Pietersen on Instagram Live in 2020.  Yuvraj Singh narrated the 2007 incident, and he said, "Andrew Flintoff came to me and said 'I am going to cut your throat off'" Then I replied, "Are you seeing this bat? You know where I'm going to hit you with this bat?" 

2) David Warner smashed the bizarre Mohammad Hafeez double-bouncer for a six

In the T20 World Cup 2021, Australian batsman David Warner was in a controversy when he smashed Pakistan bowler Mohammad Hafeez's double-bouncer for a six.

Hafeez came to bowl in the 8th over, and he lost his control while bowling the first ball of this over against Australia, as it bounced twice before David Warner hit that for a six. 

After that, many of them criticized David Warner for that shot, and they believed he should not have hit that ball. On the other hand, some of Warner's fans praised him for that funny way of shooting. 

3) Quinton de Kock refused to kneel as a symbolic gesture against racism

Concerned over his unwillingness to kneel, Quinton de Kock was forced to withdraw from South Africa's Twenty20 World Cup match against the West Indies.

This decision brought attention to the sport's ongoing challenges in helping the nation move past its turbulent history. Quinton de Kock refused to kneel against racism during the match against the West Indies in the 2021 T20 World Cup. 

Later, he apologized by posting a post on Twitter regarding his rude behavior against the malpractice. 

4) Shahid Afridi's controversial statement over Indian and Pakistani fans

Shahid Afridi, who is always known for his controversial statements, got limelight for another one of his statements during a press conference at the T20 World Cup 2016 in Kolkata. 

Shahid Afridi said in favor of Indian fans in the post-match press conference, "I get more love from Indian fans than Pakistani fans, and I love playing in India more than anywhere in the world".

After this, Pakistani fans got hurt by this statement, and an advocate in Pakistan served a legal notice to him (Shahid Afridi) for hurting the sentiments of Pakistani fans with his controversial statement.  Later, Afridi apologized and said, "I didn't mean to hurt Pakistani fans".

5) Shakib Al Hasan's LBW decision against Pakistan

In the 2022 T20 World Cup, in a match between Pakistan and Bangladesh, Shakib Al Hasan got LBW out in the 11th over; the umpire gave out, whereas Shakib took a review.

In DRS, it was clear that the ball was first touched by Shakib's bat and then the pad, but it was out as per the on-field umpire's decision.  After this, Shakib was involved in a heated conversation with the umpire and went to the pavilion in anger.