Authors
Pankaj Menon is a fact-checker based out of Delhi who enjoys ‘digital sleuthing’ and calling out misinformation. He has completed his MA in International Relations from Madras University and has worked with organisations like NDTV, Times Now and Deccan Chronicle online in the past.
Claim
Leaked footage from Pakistan dressing room after the match vs India was called off due to rain.
Fact
The video depicting Pakistani players celebrating after the India-Pakistan match was called off due to rain in the 2023 Asia Cup is actually from the year 2022.
Cricket fans world over were in for disappointment on 2nd September, 2023, when the India-Pakistan match, part of the ongoing Asia Cup 2023, was cancelled after rain played spoilsport. Soon after, a video went viral on social media, claiming to show the Pakistan team celebrating in the dressing room.
The Asia Cup 2023
The Asia Cup 2023 commenced in Sri Lanka on August 30, 2023. The first India-Pakistan match of Asia Cup 23 on 2nd September, 2023 in Kandy was suspended due to rain. India, batting first after winning the toss, struggled early at 66 for 4 in the 15th over. However, Ishan Kishan and Hardik Pandya rescued the innings with a 138-run partnership for the fifth wicket. The match ended with no result, giving Pakistan 3 points and securing their spot in the tournament’s Super Four.
To view the viral Facebook post, you can click on the following link:
The post that went viral on X (earlier Twitter) can be viewed by clicking here –
Apart from this, many users have also shared this video clip with the same claim. They can be viewed by clicking here, here, here and here.
Fact Check/Verification
In order to ascertain the facts of the viral video, we conducted a Google reverse image search on the keyframes which took us to several media reports that were shared on September 5, 2022, which indicated that the Pakistani cricketers were celebrating as Pakistan registered a last-over win over arch-rivals India in a Super Four clash of the Asia Cup 2022 in UAE.
Following the win, a video of the dressing room was circulated on the official Twitter handle of Pakistan Cricket. The video can be viewed by clicking here.
Both Indian and Pakistani media outlets reported on the video on September 5, 2022. You can access the Indian media outlets’ articles, along with the viral video, by clicking on the following links: here, here, and here.
Can be accessed the Pakistani News outlet’s content on the same by clicking here
We then examined the frames from both videos and found that the viral video had been created by cropping a segment from 1.51 seconds till end, from the original video. Here’s a comparison of the timelines, posting times, and frames of the two videos for reference.
Conclusion
The video purportedly showing Pakistani players celebrating after the India-Pakistan match being called off due to rain in the 2023 Asia Cup is actually from the year 2022. Our verification has revealed that this video pertains to a match between India and Pakistan in the T20 Asia Cup in 2022 (played on 4th Sep, 2022 in UAE), not the 2023 Asia Cup. Therefore, the assertion made in the viral video is FALSE.
Result: Flase
Our Sources:
1. Tweet by Pakistan Cricket, dated September 5, 2022
2. Report published by News18, dated September 5, 2022
3. Report published by Hindustan Times, dated September 5, 2022
4. Report published by Indian Express, dated September 5, 2022
5. Report published by PakistanCricket.com, dated September 5, 2022
6. Facebook post by Prafful Kumar Singh, dated September 5, 2022
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Authors
Pankaj Menon is a fact-checker based out of Delhi who enjoys ‘digital sleuthing’ and calling out misinformation. He has completed his MA in International Relations from Madras University and has worked with organisations like NDTV, Times Now and Deccan Chronicle online in the past.
