PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi to personally pay Haris Rauf’s fine: sources

LAHORE: Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman Mohsin Naqvi has decided to personally pay the fine imposed on pacer Haris Rauf for breaching the International Cricket Council (ICC) Code of Conduct during the ongoing Asia Cup 2025, sources told Geo News on Friday.

According to the sources, Naqvi has pledged to cover any ICC-imposed fines on Pakistani cricketers from his own pocket. The ICC conducted hearings on Friday regarding disciplinary cases involving Pakistan’s Haris Rauf and top-order batter Sahibzada Farhan.

Rauf was fined 30 percent of his match fee after being found guilty of making inappropriate gestures toward Indian fans who were heckling him during the high-voltage Super Four clash between Pakistan and India on September 21 in Dubai.

Meanwhile, Farhan, who celebrated his half-century in the same game with a “gunfire celebration” using his bat, escaped with a formal warning issued by ICC match referee Richie Richardson.

On the Indian side, T20I captain Suryakumar Yadav was also fined 30 percent of his match fee for breaching the ICC Code of Conduct following Pakistan’s group-stage defeat on September 14. 

Yadav’s post-match comments, which carried political undertones referencing the armed forces, triggered a strong reaction from the PCB, which demanded a Level 4 sanction — the most serious category of disciplinary action — arguing the remarks violated the spirit of the game and damaged cricket’s reputation.

The controversial statements, coupled with tensions already running high during the Pakistan–India encounters, fueled further debate. 

Both teams even skipped the customary pre-match handshake at the toss, reportedly on the advice of the match referee.

India went on to win the group-stage encounter by seven wickets, but Yadav’s remarks have continued to draw sharp criticism from cricket analysts, who labeled them “unprecedented” and “harmful to the spirit of the game.”