Pakistani players Haris Rauf and Sahibzada Farhan appeared for the ICC hearing over an official complaint lodged by the BCCI for their provocative gestures during the India vs Pakistan Super Fours match of the ongoing Asia Cup 2025 tournament.
This match was played on September 21 in Dubai and saw tempers flare between the Indian and Pakistani players. Sahibzada Farhan made a gun-firing gesture to celebrate his half-century, while Haris Rauf got into a verbal altercation with India’s Abhishek Sharma. Shaheen Afridi also received an earful from Abhishek Sharma and Shubman Gill.
However, it was Haris Rauf’s ‘6-0’ gesture and plane-crashing antics in response to Indian fans jeering him that caught the attention of the BCCI and social media. The 6-0 gesture was linked to Pakistan’s unproven claims of downing six Indian Rafale jets during Operation Sindoor, which was launched by the Indian armed forces in May in retaliation for the Pahalgam terror attack in April this year.
India Today has reported that during the ICC hearing, Haris Rauf pleaded not guilty and claimed that the 6-0 gesture signified nothing and was not intended at India. The pacer even asked the ICC personnel what they thought the gesture represented, but they did not have an explanation.
On the other hand, Sahibzada Farhan also pleaded not guilty for his gun-fire celebration. He insisted that it was not political, citing former India captains MS Dhoni and Virat Kohli as precedent. Farhan had used the celebration after reaching his fifty against India in the Super Fours match.
Both men are allegedly facing only a fine. There are no reports of either of them receiving match bans. The ruling will be released later on Friday.
The Pakistan Cricket Board also objected to Yadav's mention of Operation Sindoor, the Indian government’s military reaction to the Pahalgam attack in April, stating that his comments had political implications.
On Thursday, India captain Suryakumar Yadav completed his own hearing after the PCB filed a complaint against him for his post-match statements during their group stage encounter, in which he dedicated India’s victory to the armed services. Yadav faced Richie Richardson, the match referee, and pleaded not guilty. The ICC has warned him against making similar statements in the future.
(India Today inputs)
