India has filed an official complaint with the ICC against Pakistan cricketers Haris Rauf and Sahibzada Farhan for their provocative gestures during the Super 4 match during the ongoing Asia Cup 2025 on Sunday, September 21.
According to PTI report, the BCCI filed the complaint against the duo on Wednesday and a hearing by the ICC is expected to take place in case Sahibzada and Rauf deny these allegations in writing. They might have to appear before the ICC Elite Panel Referee, Richie Richardson for a hearing.
Why did BCCI file a complaint against Rauf and Sahibzada Farhana?
During the September 21 match, Rauf had made gestures to depict the bringing down of a plane to mock India's military action after Indian supporters chanted "Kohli, Kohli".
The pacer was also involved in a war of words with Indian openers Shubman Gill and Abhishek Sharma during his bowling spell and the two youngsters responded with their bats.
On the other hand, Sahibzada, during the same match, celebrated his half-century with a gun-firing gesture, which has been widely criticised.
Following the match, the Pakistan opener revealed the reason behind the celebration. He said, "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,".
Adding fuel to the fire, Asian Cricket Council chairman Mohsin Naqvi on Wednesday posted a slow-motion video of Cristiano Ronaldo on 'X', where the Portuguese legend is seen gesturing that an aircraft suddenly crashed, something that Rauf indicated on-field during the clash of arch-rivals last Sunday.
