Nasir Hussain Shah offers to pay ICC fine imposed on Haris Rauf

KARACHI: Pakistan People’s Party leader and Sindh Minister for Local Government, Nasir Hussain Shah, has announced he will personally pay the fine imposed on fast bowler Haris Rauf by the International Cricket Council (ICC).

In a post on social media platform X, Shah wrote that both Haris Rauf and opener Sahibzada Farhan are “brave men,” adding that “even if the fine is 300 per cent, we and the entire nation stand firmly with him.” He further stated that the amount imposed on Rauf will be paid from his own pocket.

Earlier, sources had reported that Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman Mohsin Naqvi had also pledged to cover the cost of the penalty on behalf of the pacer.

The controversy arose during the Asia Cup match against India on September 21, when Sahibzada Farhan, after scoring a half-century, celebrated by mimicking a gunfire gesture with his bat.

In a separate incident, Haris Rauf, after taking a wicket and while fielding near the boundary, responded to hostile Indian fans by gesturing as if an aircraft was being shot down.

According to cricket website reports, the match referee deemed Rauf guilty of breaching the ICC Code of Conduct and fined him 30 percent of his match fee.

Sahibzada Farhan, however, escaped monetary punishment and was let off with a formal warning.