Media365
Pakistan opener Sahibzada Farhan has defended his highly controversial celebration in the Asia Cup Super Four match against India, where he marked his half-century with a gesture imitating the firing of an AK-47. The gesture, made in front of a packed crowd in Dubai, sparked instant reactions online. While some fans viewed it as an expression of passion, others criticised the same given the charged atmosphere of an India-Pakistan encounter. Clips of the same quickly went viral on social media, dividing spectators
The 29-year-old, who reached his fifty with a six off Axar Patel, admitted the celebration was not pre-planned. “It was just in the moment. I rarely celebrate fifties. It just suddenly came to me that I should do a celebration and it happened like that. I don’t know how people took it. I don’t care about that,” Farhan said after the game.. Farhan’s innings had set the tone for Pakistan’s innings, as he combined with Saim Ayub to rebuild after Fakhar Zaman’s early dismissal. His half-century came off just 34 deliveries, complete 5 fours and 3 sixes, that kept the scoreboard moving. During the game, Farhan was also seen exchanging words with Hardik Pandya. He played down the incident, insisting his approach was not targeted at India specifically. “You have to play aggressive cricket, be it any opposition. It isn’t necessary that it has to be against India. You have to play aggressively against every side, like we did today against India,” he explained. Despite the controversy surrounding the celebration, India pulled off an emphatic six-wicket win, with 7 balls to spare. They are now in pole position to make the finals in the Super Fours stage thanks to their superior net run rate of +0.689.
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Bangaldesh are second after defeating Sri Lanka in the other Super Fours clash. Pakistan are bottom of the standings, while Sri Lanka are third.
