Coach Waqar Younis also conceded that it had been a punishing tour “on and off the field” after corruption investigations engulfed the side, triggering a barrage of condemnation from the press and public.
An exhausted-looking Afridi flew in to Karachi with three team-mates while the rest of the squad arrived in Lahore in the early hours, with a phalanx of gun-toting policemen escorting the players out of both airports.
“It was tough because of the controversies and became very difficult to cope with, because every time we went out of the hotel people passed remarks against us,” Afridi told a scrum of reporters in Karachi.
“Because of the controversies on the tour, it was the most difficult tour of my 14-year career,” the explosive all-rounder added.
The tour ended on Wednesday with Pakistan losing the one-day series 3-2.
England also took the Test and Twenty20 series.
The tour will be remembered less for the on-field play and more for the off-field revelations by British tabloids that sparked investigations by Scotland Yard and the International Cricket Council (ICC).
Allegations of spot-fixing in the Lord's Test against England engulfed Test captain Salman Butt along with bowlers Mohammad Aamer and Mohammad Asif. All three were questioned by British police and returned home early to Pakistan.
The ICC launched another probe into a suspicious scoring pattern by Pakistan in the third one-day match at The Oval on September 17, prompting Pakistan's cricket chief to hurl corruption allegations in turn against England.
The Pakistan Cricket Board on Thursday hired lawyers to reply to a legal notice filed by English officials demanding an “unreserved apology” over the allegations by PCB chairman Ijaz Butt.
Butt had accused England players of deliberately losing The Oval match in return for “enormous amounts of money”, prompting passionate denials by England. There was also an off-field altercation between rival players.
Afridi said team unity had remained intact despite the storm of controversy.
“The best part of the whole tour was that the players showed unity even in difficult times and gave a good fight in the one-day series against England,”he said, while also hinting at a return to Test cricket.
“I will think about it and if the team needs it, I may consider playing the Test series against South Africa,” he said, ahead of the Proteas encounters starting late next month on neutral turf in the United Arab Emirates.
Foreign teams have shunned tours of Pakistan since Sri Lanka were attacked by gunmen near Lahore's Gaddafi stadium in March 2009. Seven Sri Lankan players and a coach were wounded in the attack, which killed eight Pakistanis.
Pakistan began their troubled summer tour with matches against Australia in England, winning both Twenty20 matches and squaring the two-Test series 1-1.
Waqar, one of Pakistan's greatest bowlers, said the tour's length had taken its toll.“If you take into account the tour to Sri Lanka before we went to England, it was four months on the trot and the tour of England was difficult both on and off the field,” the coach said on his arrival in Lahore.
“We had successes against Australia which were pleasing,” Waqar added.
“But because of the controversies it was tough against England, because you need to go to extra effort to gee up the players when you see a report in the newspaper every other day.”

“All the players including Shoaib Akhtar and Shoaib Malik are quite fit and they have been asked to keep their focus on cricket as the dressing room atmosphere has changed,” Afridi said. “I have talked to both Shoaib and Malik to ensure that no wrong action should come from them as Pakistan cricket is on the revamping course,” he added. About the inaugural match of the Asia Cup against Sri Lanka, Afridi said that a win in that match could give Pakistan a positive start in the tournament. “The Sri Lankan team is a tough opponent and will be playing at home. So a win in that match will raise the morale of our team, which will help us do better in the following matches,” the captain said. Afridi claimed that his side was a balanced one and the boys were quite geared up to deliver. He emphasised that better results in Sri Lanka would also help the national team to do well in future assignments in England. Afridi said all the teams were equally good and he would not judge them as weak rivals. About Shoaib Akhtar’s fitness, Afridi said he was fit and earned his selection. “If Shoaib Akhtar keeps himself fit, he is still an important player for Pakistan till the 2011 World Cup,” he asserted. Backing the younger players named in the squad, Afridi said they had a lot of potential and will definitely be given a chance in the Asia Cup. He asserted that collective efforts were the key to success and he would take all steps to maintain unity in the team. Meanwhile, coach Waqar Younis said the camp was of a shorter duration but he did his best to achieve maximum results in improving the skill of the boys in all departments of the game. “I am fully satisfied with the sessions in the camp and I am looking forward to a good performance from the team in Asia Cup,” the former fast bowler said. “A lot of focus was also on discipline in the camp.” Speaking about the key match against India in the event on June 19, the coach said it will without a doubt be a great contest as India had also announced a very tough team which could test any side. Waqar said the local conditions in Dambulla had been considered before preparing the Pakistan squad. He further said that he was expecting bouncy tracks there helping fast bowlers and it would be difficult to bat under lights on such wickets. To a question regarding the missing seniors Younis Khan and Mohammad Yousuf from the side, Waqar said both were great players but every team needed new blood and he had great hopes from the youngsters accompanying the team. When grilled about the team management’s strategy to keep the media away from the national training camp, Waqar said it was an attempt to avoid further controversies. “Pakistan cricket has been damaged a lot in the last three months due to controversies. The defeats we have faced in the past three months are more when compared to the last 25 years,” he said. Welcoming Shoaib Akhtar back to international cricket, Waqar said though the bowler was staging a comeback after a long gap, he would adjust quickly. “Shoaib is an experienced bowler and we desire that he plays all the matches. But we will use him in such a way that he becomes more effective in important matches.” Waqar dispelled the impression that he had any differences with assistant coach Aaqib Javed and said he was his old time friend. Asked since Aaqib had given a statement against some players before the PCB inquiry committee on which basis the players were heavily penalised, he said the dressing room atmosphere would not be affected due to such things. The players will reassemble in Karachi on June 12 to leave for Sri Lanka.