Sahibzada Farhan scored 40 and 58 against India in two matches of Asia Cup 2025.
Pakistan was asked to bat first by India captain Suryakumar Yadav, who won the toss. Farhan and Fakhar Zaman opened the innings, and while Zaman fell early, Farhan continued to score crisply against Jasprit Bumrah and co.
He added 72 runs with Saim Ayub (21) for the second wicket and made 58 runs in 45 balls when he was dismissed. Thanks to his knock, Pakistan posted 171/6 in 20 overs, with Faheem Ashraf making 20* in quick times.
His exuberance after hitting the milestone became a contentious topic among fans, even if his half-century gave Pakistan a respectable foundation. Farhan used the 'gun gesture' to commemorate reaching the 50-run milestone. Fans were startled by the celebration, and some even criticized the opening batter.
Farhan was questioned about his celebration against India during the press conference on Monday, the eve of Pakistan's second Super 4 match against Sri Lanka. The 29-year-old brashly declared that he didn't give a damn about what people thought and celebrated the way he wanted to.
"I think, if you talk about the sixes, you will see that a lot in the future. And that (celebration) was just a moment at that time. I do not do a lot of celebrations after scoring 50. But, it suddenly came to my mind that let's do a celebration today. I did that. I don't know how people will take it. I don't care about that. And the rest, you know, you should play aggressive cricket wherever you play. It is not necessary that it be India. You should play aggressive cricket against every team, like we played today," he said, in response to the question.
When questioned about Pakistan's plan for the match against Sri Lanka, Farhan stated that the side had previously lost a significant number of wickets in powerplays. Fixing that is crucial, as is making sure that runs are scored in the first six overs.
"I think in the last few matches, what was missing was that we were not utilizing power plays well. We were given early wickets. It is important to use the power plays well and also not give away wickets. The way we played in power plays today, we did not give away early on wickets. God willing, our power play was also very good, as we scored 90-something runs in 10 overs. We did collapse in the middle, but we will rectify it," he concluded.