A video doing the rounds on social media shows Rauf confronting a group of people
ESPNcricinfo staff18-Jun-2024Haris Rauf, the Pakistan quick bowler, has responded to a video of a confrontation between him and some unidentified men, which has done the rounds on social media, saying he was open to “feedback from the public” but that he will “respond accordingly” if the feedback turned to abuse and his family was targeted.The video in question shows Rauf, with his wife, talking to a few people, and Rauf, not long after, rushing across a hedge towards the group, even as one of the men tries to stop him. There is some pushing and shoving, and some raised voices, before Rauf is taken back across the hedge to where his wife is. The finger-pointing and shouting isn’t quite over when the video ends.In a social-media post, Rauf wrote: “As public figures, we are open to receiving all kinds of feedback from the public. They are entitled to support or criticize us. Nevertheless, when it comes to my parent and my family, I will not hesitate to respond accordingly. It is important to show respect towards people and their families, irrespective of their professions.”
The video appears to have been shot somewhere in the USA – Pakistan’s last group-stage match at the T20 World Cup was played in Lauderhill, against Ireland, which they won but that wasn’t enough for them to progress to the Super Eight stage of the tournament.Mohsin Naqvi, the PCB chairman, responded* to the development with a tweet on Tuesday evening, saying, “Strongly condemn the appalling incident involving Haris Rauf. Such actions against our players are completely unacceptable and will not be tolerated. Those who are involved must immediately apologise to Haris Rauf, failing which we will pursue legal action against the individual responsible.”Related
-
Babar Azam: Pakistan captaincy is 'PCB's decision'
-
Pakistan must face up to hard truths of modern T20
Rauf is a centrally contracted Pakistan cricketer. His contract, in fact, was reinstated under curious circumstances earlier this year after it had been ripped up. On February 15 this year, the PCB terminated Rauf’s contract because he had made himself unavailable for Pakistan’s Test series against Australia late last year. But on March 24, Rauf had his contract back, with Naqvi calling the episode “a misunderstanding”.At the T20 World Cup, Rauf was among Pakistan’s better performers with the ball, picking up seven wickets in four bowling innings at an economy rate of 6.73. Pakistan, however, lost to USA (in a Super Over) and to India, and failed to make the top two from their group despite closing out their campaign with wins over Canada and Ireland.
