Pakistan captain Sarfaraz Ahmed says incidents like the one in which he was compared to a "pig" by a fan are hurtful but there is nothing he can do to prevent them and can only plead for civility in criticism.
Pakistani fans severely criticised the national team after its 89-run loss to arch-rivals India in a World Cup encounter in Manchester.
In a recent video that went viral on social media, Sarfaraz, walking in a mall in England with his son, was stopped by a fan, who asked him why he looked like a fat pig. The fan eventually apologised for his conduct after drawing flak from all corners for targetting the player during a private moment.
"I can't say anything on this. It's not in our hands to control what people say about us. Winning and losing is part of the game and it's not that we are the first team to have lost a match; previous teams also have faced defeats," Sarfaraz said.
Speaking to ICC World Cup presenter Zainab Abbas, Sarfaraz however did say that the incident in the mall affected even his wife when she heard of it.
“I found my wife crying and upset after she saw the video. However, I consoled her and kept a positive attitude,” said Sarfaraz.
Sarfaraz also stated that the week after their loss to India had been incredibly tough.
“One thing that is very important to know is that our fans really appreciate and love us. Unfortunately, the last week that went by,after our loss against India, it has been very tough for us.” Sarfaraz Ahmed
He talked about how incidents like these effect the psychology of the players:
Had earlier teams faced the kind of criticism that we are facing, they would have realised how much these things hurt us. Now, there is social media. People write, comment and say whatever they like. These incidents affect the psychology of the players.Sarfaraz Ahmed
He also spoke about how the team learnt from this. Pakistan responded to this in their comeback game against South Africa, where they won by 49 runs. They stand at the seventh place in the points table with five points from six matches.
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