The Pakistan cricket team has faced backlash for organising private dinners for fans in the United States during their T20 World Cup campaign. The controversy has hit the Pakistan team ahead of their tournament opener against the USA as former wicketkeeper batter Rashid Latif has lashed out at the Pakistan Cricket Board for hosting private dinners for fans for USD 25.
Latif posted a video on his account on X where he pointed out that the fans in the USA were invited to meet the Pakistan players for a private dinner which was not a free or charity event. The veteran Pakistan wicketkeeper batter called it a terrible idea by the PCB to host a private dinner.
“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.
Pakistan arrived in New York after suffering a 0-2 defeat against England, as they lost a T20I match to Ireland earlier, which dented their confidence ahead of the mega ICC event.
Meanwhile, they also drew a five-match series 2-2 against a New Zealand team which missed several senior stars from the T20 World Cup squad as they prioritised playing in IPL.
Latif further said that private dinners have become a common practice among the Pakistan team, which is not a good sign.
“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,” Latif added.
Meanwhile, the veteran wicketkeeper suggested that attending a fundraising event or a charity dinner is a different thing but meeting and greeting fans for USD 25 is a poor mistake by PCB.
“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.