T20 WC: Before India clash, Pakistan players SLAMMED for charging fans for a private dinner

Ahead of their marquee encounter versus India at the 2024 T20 World Cup, the Pakistan cricket team has landed itself in trouble. Before their T20 WC opener, where they face USA on June 6 in Dallas, Babar Azam & Co. is said to have hosted a dinner party for fans in the USA. Apparently, the fans were invited for a 'meet and greet' session with the Pakistani players. However, the invite wasn'tfree and fans were said to have been charged$25 (INR 2,000 approx).

Thus, this has not been well received by the Pakistan cricket fraternity. Former Pakistan wicketkeeper-captain Rashid Latif was left fuming and he took to social media to make the shocking claims. He further highlighted that the programme was organised by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and players.

On social media platform X, formerly Twitter, Latif posted a video and claimed that the fans were charged for the 'meet and greet' session. "There are official dinners, but this is a private dinner. Who can do this? It's terrible. That means you met our players in 25 dollars. God forbid, had there been a mess, people would have said boys are earning money," Latif said in the video.

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Here is the video:

In addition, television presenter and cricket correspondent Nauman Niaz called out the "sad state of affairs".

Further, Latif also suggested that while he understood the idea of organising charity dinners, however, hosting a private dinnerwith a feeis astonishing.

In this regard, Latif commented, "People tell me that whoever calls the Pakistan players, they just ask, 'how much money will you give?' This has become common. Things were different at our time. We had 2–3 dinners, but they were official. But this is highlighted because it's the World Cup. So the players should be careful. The amount of 25 dollars shouldn't be blatantly used like this."

"You attend 2–3 dinners, but without the commercial angle. You can go for charity dinners and fundraisers, but this is neither fundraising nor a charity dinner. This is a private function with the name of Pakistan and Pakistan cricket associated with it. Don't make this mistake," he added.

Babar-led Pakistan are placed in Group A along with arch-rivals India, Canada, USA and Ireland in the ongoing T20 WC, in West Indies and the USA. While they open their campaign versus USA, their clash against India (in New York on June 9) is keenly awaited.