Former India all-rounder Irfan Pathan took a dig at fans of the Pakistan cricket team after India's Asia Cup 2023 opener against them was washed out at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium on Saturday (September 2). Notably, while India batted first and managed to post 266 in 48.5 overs before being bowled out, moments before Pakistan's chase was to begin it started raining. Later, covers were removed and an inspection held by the on-field umpires sparking hopes of a resumption in the match with Indian players even starting to warm up.
However, rain returned and covers never really got off again. The cut-off time for a minimum of a 20-over chase was 10:27 pm but the ground staff conveyed the match officials that they would need at least 45 minutes to make the ground ready for the match after it
completely stops raining. But when the rain did not stop till at around 09:50 pm, the match referee decided to call the match off and the players shook hands.
While many felt that Pakistan was the happier team heading into the halfway mark, Pathan reckoned that the match was India's to lose and even shared a hilarious dig at Pakistan fans. Reacting to several past incidents where angry fans after their team's defeat to India had smashed television sets, Pathan wrote: "Bahot saare Padosiyon ke TV bach gaye aaj;)" which loosely translates to "Many neighbours' TVs were saved today."
Meanwhile, as a result of the washed out match, Pakistan have secured a place for themselves in the Super Fours. India meanwhile have a Group-stage match against Nepal remaining. A washed out game will be enough for the Men in Blue to proceed to the next round while Nepal must win if they want to remain alive in the continental tournament.