India’s T20 cricket captain Suryakumar Yadav faced questions from ICC match referee Richie Richardson on Thursday over comments he made after India’s big win against Pakistan in the Asia Cup. The meeting happened in Dubai, following a complaint from the Pakistan Cricket Board about Yadav’s political remarks during a post-match press conference on September 21.
Sources say Yadav admitted to the statements when shown video clips. He appeared alongside BCCI officials, including COO Hemang Amin and operations manager Sumeet Mallapurkar. The ICC has now warned him to steer clear of political talk in official press conferences moving forward, stressing that such comments could complicate things if everyone starts doing it.
The drama started after India beat Pakistan in their Group A clash. Yadav dedicated the victory to victims of the recent Pahalgam terror attack in India and praised the armed forces for Operation Sindoor, India’s strike on terror bases in Pakistan. Tensions ran high—no handshake from Yadav to Pakistan captain Salman Agha at the toss, and the Indian team skipped the traditional post-match greetings.
When reporters asked if this broke the spirit of sportsmanship, Yadav stood firm: “Some things matter more than sportsman spirit. We stand with the Pahalgam victims and honor our forces in Operation Sindoor.”
This isn’t one-sided, though. The ICC has summoned two Pakistani players—Sahibzada Farhan and Haris Rauf—for a hearing on Friday. India lodged a complaint over their actions during a Super 4 match against India. Farhan mimicked firing a gun with his bat, while Rauf gestured about a plane crash, nodding to Pakistan’s unproven claims of downing Indian jets in Operation Sindoor. Both players missed Thursday’s session because they were playing Bangladesh but promised to show up.
The ICC views these as code of conduct violations for bringing politics into cricket. As the Asia Cup heats up, fans are watching closely how the governing body handles these India-Pakistan rivalries.
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