India registered a hard-fought five-wicket win over arch-rivals Pakistan in Asia Cup 2022 with Hardik Pandya clobbering spinner Mohammad Nawaz for a maximum to finish off the proceedings with two balls to spare. While the win paved way for celebrations among the Indian fans all over the world, there is one thing that caught the attention of many.
After Pandya hit the winning shot, Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) Secretary Jay Shah was seen refusing to hold the Indian national flag, and was heavily criticized. After the match was finished, one of Shah’s fellow spectator was spotted offering the Indian flag to him to celebrate the victory, which he politely refused.
Why did BCCI secretary Jay Shah refuse to hold the Indian flag?
While the Twitterati and the politicians slammed Shah for not celebrating by waving the Tricolor, it is learnt that Shah had to abide by the rules of the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) as he is the reigning ACC President. “Because he is president of the Asian Cricket Council. And as per code of conduct, he has to show neutrality against all stakeholders”, the tweet read.
I’ll take wins like this over one-sided wins: Rohit Sharma
Meanwhile, after India’s win, skipper Rohit Sharma lauded the team for their effort. “Halfway through the innings, we still believed,” he said in the post-match presentation. “That’s the kind of belief we want to have in this group, where you’re not in the game and you still manage to pull it off. We want to make sure they’ve all been given enough clarity around what to do in the middle. I’ll take wins like this over one-sided wins.
“The fast bowlers have done very well in the last 12 months or so. We were challenged at times but overcoming those challenges will take us forward. Since Hardik’s comeback into this team, he’s been brilliant. Had a great IPL too. His batting qualities we all know, he has been brilliant with the bat since he came into the team,” Rohit added.
