Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chief Zaka Ashraf's alleged explosive comments against India, headlined by words 'Dushman Mulk' has cut a antagonistic figure of him among the neighbours. Certain netizens believe that Indians should show the Pakistan cricket team what real enmity means instead of giving them a rousing welcome ahead of the World Cup. A certain section of Pakistan fans also blasted him for the comment.
With the Babar Azam-led Pakistani team landing in Hyderabad on Wednesday ahead of the showpiece event, starting on October 5th, fans gave an incredibly rousing welcome to them. The likes of Babar Azam, Shaheen Shah Afridi, and Mohammad Rizwan took to their official social media accounts and acknowledged the support received for them.
However, on the same day, Ashraf said the following during a media interaction:
"The morale of the players should be up when they go to an enemy country or where the competition is being held. They should go with full support of the nation so that they can perform well."
Relations between India and Pakistan haven't been the best in the past decade, with both sides not playing a bilateral series since 2012-13. There was also a massive row regarding the venue for the 2023 World Cup as Pakistan initially wanted to play their matches at a neutral venue. Furthermore, Pakistani media was unhappy at being issued visas to their countrymen quite late.
Here's how the netizens reacted to Zaka Ashraf's comments:
