Pakistan Fans Slam ICC Over Babar Azam’s Exclusion From World Cup 2023 Promo
Babar Azam was excluded from 2023 WC promo (Twitter)
A legion of Pakistan cricket supporters are lashing out at the International Cricket Council (ICC) over the recently-released 2023 World Cup promo. Several fans have alleged the apex body of being impartial towards them, considering they completely excluded current Pakistan skipper Babar Azam from the promotional content.
Notably, the promo features ace Pakistani speedster Shaheen Afridi, along with the country’s 2019 World Cup participant Wahab Riaz.
Pakistan fans cry foul over World Cup promo video
Scores of Pakistan cricket fans took to Twitter to express their displeasure over Babar Azam’s exclusion from the World Cup 2023 promo video. The video, over two minutes long, was narrated by Bollywood superstar Shahrukh Khan.
The entertaining clip features archival footage of nostalgic moments from the preceding World Cup editions. The advertisement was also graced by Indian women’s cricketer Jemimah Rodrigues with a sizzling dance number alongside several fans.
Here is a look at some of the Pakistani fans expressing their anguish towards ICC:
Some Pakistani fans even alleged the ICC for giving special treatment to tournament hosts and apex body’s biggest benefactor India, as the promo featured batting superstar Virat Kohli alongside country’s World Cup winning captains Kapil Dev and MS Dhoni.
Interestingly, active ODI captains from several member nations also did not make a cut in the video, including Australia’s Pat Cummins and England’s Jos Buttler.
In the meantime, Pakistan will launch their World Cup 2023 campaign with a match against Netherlands on October 6. Their blockbuster clash against arch-rivals India is set for October 15 at Ahmedabad’s Narendra Modi Stadium.
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