The video which showed Pakistan fast bowler Haris Rauf in a heated verbal spat with a fan has landed him in controversy. It happened after Pakistan’s failure to make it past the group stage of the T20 world cup in USA and West Indies, where they lost to minnows USA as well as their traditional nemesis, India, despite being in strong positions at first.
In the viral video, Rauf is seen walking with his wife when they encounter a group of people.While the exact details of the conversation are unclear, it is alleged that the group was taunting Rauf over Pakistan’s poor performance in the tournament.
Reacting to that provocation, visibly angry cricketer dashes toward herd and jumps hedge on his way.
But his wife tries to stop him calmly and take away slippers. Nonetheless he goes forward towards them for fighting then somebody holds him back.
Rauf says “I cannot keep quite when my family is brought into this kind of thing.”
On X’ Harley wrote : “I decided not to post this on social media but now that there’s an actual video I need to talk about this.”
“As public figures we ought to expect all kinds of feedback from our fans. They are allowed either supporting us or criticizing us yet I will not hesitate responding on my mother or any other member of my family. It is important therefore to honor individuals and respect families regardless of their profession,” he noted further.
Following Haris’ altercation with a fan, some of his teammates including former cricketers have publicly supported him.
“It’s disgusting how Haris Rauf was treated like that!! Nobody should belittle and disrespect another person! Even sharing this video shocked me too because really? Cmon guys let’s prioritize humanity over likes! Stay strong Harry! We got your back!” Shaheen Shah Afridi posted on Instagram,
One such criticism came from team mate Hassan Ali who wanted it to be a constructive one.
“There is a video going around about Harry and I humbly request all my lovely cricket fans to keep in mind that criticism can be constructively honest. Let us argue with respect of each other’s families! Let us love, peace and respect the GAME. Pakistan Cricket Zindabad,” he tweeted.
Shahid Afridi, ex- Pakistan captain, dubbed it as ‘unacceptable’.
“The Haris Rauf incident is totally unacceptable! We should never lose respect or cross the line. The ones spreading hatred should stop now,” Afridi said.
“Fans have every right to criticize our performance. We accept it and try to learn from it. But don’t come at anyone personally when their family is around – absolutely out of bounds!! How would u feel if someone attacked u personally while with family? #HarisRauf,” Shadab Khan wrote on his Twitter page.
Another player Shadab Khan wondered how one would feel if someone personally attacked them in front of their family “Ap family k sath ja rhy hain aur koi apko Maa behn ki Gali deta rahay, kio k ap tu public property hain”, he posted on his twitter account adding “Nonsense and unacceptable!! Criticism is always welcomed but it shouldn’t come in form of disrespect or abuse please”
Mohammad Nawaz made his thoughts known saying “It’s okay if they say anything against your performance but if someone starts abusing you while you are with your family then how will you feel?”
Who is the person that disrespected Haris Rauf? It doesn’t matter if it was a Pakistani or Indian. The only thing that counts is that this person did not know good way of doing things. Everybody is entitled to respect and should not be taken for granted by any other person. This attitude needs to be put in check once and for all. Several human attributes such as tolerance, regard and empathy are progressively scarce,” Mohammad Rizwan explained.
