Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has insisted that its players did not stay out of the team hotel beyond the curfew time the night before the World Cup game against India after videos circulated on social media claimed otherwise.
A video and picture showed Immam-Ul-Haq, Wahab Riaz, Imad Waseem out with Shoaib Malik and His Wife Tennis Star Sania Mirza having sheesha at a cafe.
A Local Journalist’s Tweet Broke the News
After Pakistan lost the match to India on Sunday evening, Pakistan-based journalist Murtaza Ali Shah tweeted, “Shoaib Malik out on zero. At 2am on Sunday, he was at the Winslow Road sheesha bar with his wife and mates. This was the kind of preparedness against India. Where’s the mighty ehsan mani and IK’s promise of taking pak cricket to new heights in Naya Pakistan.”
Shoaib Malik out on zero. At 2am on Sunday, he was at the Winslow Road sheesha bar with his wife and mates. This was the kind of preparedness against India. Where’s the mighty ehsan mani and IK’s promise of taking pak cricket to new heights in Naya Pakistan pic.twitter.com/tW3ay3TaNV
— Murtaza Ali Shah (@MurtazaViews) June 16, 2019
Ahead of crucial fight against India, some players were having sheesha in Manchester while others partied till late the house of a rich Pakistani businessman in the city linked with PTI. Team management partied too at the rich man’s house. Discipline violated blatantly #PakvsInd pic.twitter.com/l0YNsKHV08
— Murtaza Ali Shah (@MurtazaViews) June 16, 2019
The Retweets Begin
Shah’s post was re-tweeted by more than 1,300 users. Twitter user Pakistan my Pride’ put up a video with the same accusation as well. This post too was shared multiple times.
Fake News Alert
But a spokesman later for the PCB made it clear that no player had violated the curfew timings set by the team management. “The video under discussion was of two days back. On the night before the match, all the players were in their rooms before curfew time,” he clarified.
Sania Mirza had to Intervene
The viral video has also led to Indian tennis star Sania tweeting that whoever recorded the video had not done the right thing as it was an invasion of privacy and that players eating out with their families was not a crime.
The Captain’s Yawn
There has also been a discussion on Sarfaraz yawning on the field and many have questioned whether the PCB’s decision to allow players to have their wives and children stay with them in the World Cup was right.
Something to ponder over
That being said, this is a good time to remind us everything on the internet is not true. Verify your facts and the twitterati before hitting that retweet button!