Desk Report:
India-Pakistan’s on-field battles are not in vain. But the word “arch-rivals” has a meaning that must be maintained. That is why the field performance is not as impressive as it is, but rather other events are discussed more.
Haris Rauf has come into the discussion after overshadowing the results of the India-Pakistan Super Four match in Dubai yesterday. A video circulating on social media shows Rauf fielding on the edge of the boundary. Indian spectators were chanting “Kohli, Kohli” at him. Rauf had hit a pair of sixes against Virat Kohli in the 2022 T20 World Cup. It is not known whether Rauf remembered that memory in Dubai yesterday. He gave a sign of a plane crash to the Indian spectators and held up 6 fingers.
What Rauf did while responding to the spectators seems indicative. India-Pakistan political hostility has already increased a lot in the last few months. The two countries engaged in a military clash in April this year after a tourist was killed in gunfire in Pahalgam, Indian-administered Kashmir. India named the operation in May as ‘Operation Sindoor’. Pakistani media claimed that six Indian aircraft were shot down by Pakistani airstrikes in the military clash between the two countries. The aircraft were said to be French Rafale jets. Reports published in Indian and Pakistani media said that Rauf’s actions in Dubai yesterday point to the incident four months ago.
Indian captain Suryakumar Yadav did not shake hands with Pakistani captain Salman Ali Agha in Dubai on September 14 due to political animosity. A week after that group stage match, India and Pakistan faced each other in the Super Four yesterday. This time too, the same incident was repeated. Even after the match, the cricketers of the two countries did not shake hands with each other. India won by 6 wickets, chasing the target of 172 runs set by Pakistan with 7 balls to spare. Rauf, who came into the discussion by hinting at the plane crash, bowled with control. He took 2 wickets for 26 runs in 4 overs. Pakistan’s next opponent in the Super Four is Sri Lanka. The Sri Lanka-Pakistan match will be held tomorrow at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi.
