Asia Cup 2025: Farhan Dismisses Criticism Over Gunshot Celebration Against India

In an already charged atmosphere, Sahibzada Farhan’s gunshot celebration after scoring a fifty against India on Sunday during the Super Fours of the Asia Cup sparked controversy, with some deeming it distasteful.

However, Farhan, who smashed a 45-ball 58, remains unfazed by the criticism.

“It was just a spur-of-the-moment decision. Normally, I don’t celebrate upon reaching a fifty. This time, I chose to, but I don’t care about people’s opinions… Our approach should be aggressive cricket against all teams, not just India, like we played today,” Farhan remarked during the pre-match press conference before Pakistan’s must-win encounter against Sri Lanka in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday.

Farhan reached his half-century with a 34-ball knock, launching a six over long-on off Axar Patel in the 10th over of Pakistan’s innings. He then turned towards his dressing room, celebrating with his bat held horizontally, the handle pointing towards himself.

At 29, Farhan has been consistently hitting sixes in T20s this year, ranking seventh worldwide with 70 maximums. He credits this achievement to his recent hard work on this aspect of his game.

“I’ve put in a lot of effort. Previously, my score rarely included multiple boundaries. Winning this match would have been very significant for me. Performing well against India is highly esteemed.”

After debuting in T20I in 2018, Farhan was mostly out of the spotlight for almost six years, only making a comeback to the national team in January last year.

Farhan’s career saw a turnaround following his exceptional performance in the Pakistan Super League this year. As the leading run-scorer for Islamabad United, amassing 449 runs with a strike rate exceeding 150, his six-hitting prowess secured him a consistent position at the top of the batting lineup after Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan were dropped earlier this year.

However, with Saim Ayub experiencing a string of three consecutive ducks, Pakistan struggled for strong starts until they restructured the order against India on Sunday, promoting Fakhar Zaman to open alongside Farhan.

“We reworked the batting lineup, which also benefited Saim [at No. 3], who executed some excellent strokes. Fakhar bhai played in his typical style. When boundaries are hit from the other end, it boosts my confidence; otherwise, pressure mounts,” Farhan explained, suggesting that Pakistan might maintain the same batting order for the important Super Four match against Sri Lanka.

Published on Sep 22, 2025