In the wake of the ongoing furore over Pakistan players Haris Rauf and Sahibzada Farhan’s offending gestures in the Asia Cup 2025 match against India, Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman and Asian Cricket Council (ACC) president Mohsin Naqvi created new controversy on Wednesday. Naqvi shared a video clip of football icon Cristiano Ronaldo making a ‘fighter jet’ gesture on his social media, an act commonly seen as an endeavor to justify the Pakistani cricketers’ actions which have already led to stern criticism.
Mohsin Naqvi Tweet.
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The altercation is the result of last Sunday’s Super Four match at the Dubai International Stadium, where Rauf taunted Indian supporters repeatedly. He made fighter jet crashing gesture while fielding close to the boundary and after picking up Sanju Samson, he gave a ‘6-0’ hand signal associated with false propaganda that six Indian Air Force aircraft were shot down in Operation Sindoor. News also did the rounds that Rauf had been screaming “6-0” while Pakistan was holding a training session at the ICC Academy the previous day.
Adding to the controversy, opener Sahibzada Farhan celebrated his half-century against India with a ‘gun-firing’ gesture, which further provoked the crowd. Instead of easing tensions, Naqvi’s Ronaldo post has been seen as escalating matters, with fans and cricket analysts slamming the ACC chief for fuelling the debate rather than defusing it.
As Pakistan keeps continuing the nuisance, a report by Dainik Jagran stated that, the Indian camp complained to match referee Andy Pycroft about Haris Rauf and Sahibzada Farhan’s behavior, labelling it as “provocative and indecent behaviour.”
