Spectators chanted ‘Parchi’ slogans after cricketer Khushdil Shah lost his wicket in the seventh T20I match against England. The crowd at Lahore’s Gaddafi Stadium expressed disapproval and booed the cricketer after he lost his wicket. Khushdil Shah scored nearly 20 runs when Pakistan was looking for a convincing performance from the players.
Pakistan had won the toss and elected to field first. England set a mighty total of 210 runs for the Pakistani side struggling with the middle-order crisis. With the early wickets of Babar Azam and Muhammad Rizwan down, the middle-order of the Pakistan cricket team crumbled. Khushdil Shah again failed to step up for the team and play a convincing and invincible knock for Pakistan.
And those who were once again ranting 'parchi parchi' when Khushdil Shah was playing, please stop and be a bit civil. No player decides to underperform on purpose and he was trying his best out there too, it wasn't just happening. Players have families watching 🙏🏼 #PAKvENG
— Farid Khan (@_FaridKhan) October 2, 2022
Fans have the right to like or dislike any cricketer but disrespectful slogans against a player, specially by home crowd, are disappointing.
— Faizan Lakhani (@faizanlakhani) October 2, 2022
There should be NO SPACE for attacking players PERSONALLY! All of you should have some shame in calling Khushdil out names and taking a dig at Shan Masood on a very personal tweet.
Shame on you all!
— Sawera Pasha (@sawerapasha) October 3, 2022
Not very often you hear the crowd turn on one of their own players and shout Parchi throughout his innings and shout Parchi at him when he's on the way back to the dressing room #PAKvENG #Cricket
— Saj Sadiq (@SajSadiqCricket) October 2, 2022
Read more: England thrashes Pakistan by 67 runs in final T20 match
Videos of the crowd chanting ‘parchi’ imply that the cricketer has made his place in the team based on personal connections and influence. Earlier, the cricketer was booed in a similar way in the matches played in Karachi as well. He not only faced criticism on the ground; other players, including him, were chastised on social media as well.
Pakistani sports commentators and journalists condemn the behavior of cricket fans on the ground. They argued that such heckling and trolling might affect the mental health and career of the player. Moreover, such things also embarrass the families of players.
Unacceptable slogans against Khushdil Shah! Dear cricket fans! Life is more than cricket. A small negative gesture may not only affect a cricketer but his family too. No player deserves humiliation no matter zero performance. Sorry Khushdil Shah! Extremely sorry!🙏🙏 #T20WorldCup
— Arfa Feroz Zake (@ArfaSays_) October 2, 2022
According to reports, Khushdil Shah broke down in the dressing room. Well done Pakistani’s for breaking a grown man, imagine when 30k ppl at the ground and millions watching/cursing you. Years of hard work to wear the badge only to be bullied by your ownpic.twitter.com/t9tnZ499R1
— Raz Khan (@razkhan789) October 2, 2022
They added that winning or losing is part of the game and players do not underperform deliberately. Criticism should not damage the dignity of the players.
Pakistani cricketer Imam-ul-Haq came in to defend Khushdil Shah and condemned the cricket fans who heckled him in the stadium.
“I would like to request our fans to avoid such rants at any player as it can badly impact the player’s health and try to support them like you always do, regardless of the results. We play for YOU, we play for PAKISTAN Stay blessed,” said Imam-ul-Haq in a tweet.