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On Sunday, September 21, Pakistan once again went down against India, registering a six-wicket defeat in the Super Four fixture of the Men’s Asia Cup 2025, underway in the United Arab Emirates. While the Men in Green finished second in the Group A standings, only behind India, they continued to fall in the trap of the Indian side after they registered a seven-wicket drubbing in the group stage match last Sunday.
While both teams had their fare share of moments in the crucial game, but India did had the last laugh, courtesy a crucial innings from Abhishek Sharma and a vital 47-run knock from Shubman Gill. However, this match was also marred with a lot of controversies, one of which was Fakhar Zaman’s controversial wicket.
Umpires can make mistake: Salman Ali Agha on Fakhar Zaman’s controversial wicket
It is to be noted that the incident took place in the third over when Fakhar Zaman edged a delivery from Hardik Pandya and Sanju Samson collected the ball behind the stumps. While the decision was referred to the third umpire, who called it out, it stirred debate immediately. Seeing this, the Pakistan skipper was inquired of the same in the post-match press conference, where he expressed his doubts.
“I don’t really know about the decision. As far as I’m concerned, I thought it bounced. Umpires can make mistakes, and that’s understandable. To me, it looked like it bounced, but I could be wrong,” Agha said. “Based on the way he was batting, if he had continued like that through the powerplay, he probably could have scored around 190. Of course, there were some byes and errors, and mistakes happen. I think it bounced just in front of the keeper, but again, I could be wrong,” he added.
Watch video of Salman Ali Agha’s subtle jibe on Fakhar Zaman’s controversial wicket:
It is to be noted that the ruling from the third umpire forced Fakhar Zaman to walk back after scoring 15 off nine balls, giving India a much-needed breakthrough. However, on the back of Sahibzada Farhan’s 58 off 45 deliveries, Pakistan posted a competitive total of 171 in 20 overs.
