
Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chief Ramiz Raja recently opened up on snapping at an Indian journalist after his team's loss in the Asia Cup 2022 final. The Babar Azam-led side had lost the summit clash against Sri Lanka by 23 runs after failing to chase down the target of 171 runs.
While Pakistan's poor show in the final drew criticism from all corners, one of the biggest talking points was Raja losing his cool at a journalist after the game. The incident happened outside the Dubai International Stadium where reporters were waiting with questions for the PCB chief after Pakistan's loss in the final.
The Indian journalist asked Raja about his views on the Pakistani fans who were disappointed after the defeat. The PCB chief lost his cool on hearing the question and went on to ask the journalist if he was from India. He then snatched the reporter's phone before returning it back.
Theclip of the incident had gone viral on social media with the Indian fans lashing out at the PCB chief over his behaviour. Raja opened up about the incident during a Q&A with fans on Pakistan Cricket's official YouTube channel. The PCB chief said the Indian reporter's line of questioning was not right and labelled his questions 'provocative'.
"I'll tell you what happened. The line of questioning was not right. The only point that I had was, the reporter asked that all Pakistan fans are angry with the loss in Asia Cup final, I just asked him how does he know that fans are angry? You are sitting in a different area, so how do you know the fans are unhappy," said Raja.
"These are provocative statements, if you do not have any malice in your heart, it will come through. Anyway, it was just one incident, we shall let it go," he added.
Also Read:BCCI set to introduce new 'impact player' rule in domestic T20s and IPL - All you need to know
After defeating Pakistan in the Super Four stage, Sri Lanka recorded a second straight win against Babar & Co. in the final of the Asia Cup to claim their sixth title. Sri Lanka rode on brilliant knocks from Bhanuka Rajapaksa (71) and Wanindu Hasaranga (36) to post a fighting total of 170 runs before the bowlers bundled out Pakistan for 147 runs to secure a comfortable victory.