Pakistan women's team captain Fatima Sana's 'plane crashing' gesture from the recent match against South Africa has surfaced ahead of facing India in the 2025 World Cup match on October 5, Sunday at the R. Premadasa Stadium in Colombo. A video of the same has surfaced as she copped some flak for the same.
The gesture from Sana refers to Pakistan and their army's baseless claims of shooting down six Indian jets during the recent military standoff against India. Pakistan men's cricketer Haris Rauf copped plenty of backlash for similar gestures during Asia Cup 2025 matches against India. The right-arm speedster was also fined 30% of his match fees for provocative gestures towards the fans during the Super 4 match at the Dubai International Stadium.
Below is the video as Sana was seen making that gesture while in dugout during a match against South Africa:
Similar to the Indian men's team, their women counterparts are also likely to maintain a no-handshake gesture with Pakistani players before and after the match.
"We'll try to do everything within the spirit of the game" - Fatima Sana
At the press conference on Saturday, Sana stated that their entire concentration is only on winning and are not paying attention to any outside noise. She stated, as quoted by ESPN Cricinfo:
"We have great relationships with all other teams, and we try and keep good relations with everyone. We'll try to do everything within the spirit of the game. Those pictures in the past with everyone mingling with each other around Bismah's daughter - those scenes look good and everyone enjoys seeing that. But, of course, our focus has to be on what we're here for - to play."
The Women in Green will be desperate for a win, having been thrashed by Sri Lanka in their first game.
