Pakistan’s Rauf given two-match ban, others sanctioned for Asia Cup behavior

Pakistan's Haris Rauf gestures towards the spectators during the Asia Cup 2025 Super Four Twenty20 international cricket match between India and Pakistan at the Dubai International Stadium in Dubai on September 21, 2025. (AFP)
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Updated 04 November 2025
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Pakistan’s Rauf given two-match ban, others sanctioned for Asia Cup behavior

  • Others whohave been sanctioned include India’s Suryakumar Yadav and Jasprit Bumrah as well as Pakistan’s Sahibzada Farhan
  • Emotions ran high around the matches between the nuclear-armed neighbors, who engaged in a brief military conflict in May

Pakistan fast bowler Haris Rauf has received a two-match suspension for breaching the ICC’s code of conduct during matches against India at the Asia Cup in September, the governing body said on Tuesday.

India’s Suryakumar Yadav and Jasprit Bumrah as well as Pakistan’s Sahibzada Farhan also committed the same offense of breaching article 2.21 of the ICC’s code of conduct, which relates to “conduct that brings the game into disrepute,” the ICC said in a statement.

Emotions ran high around the matches between the nuclear-armed neighbors, who engaged in a brief military conflict in May.

The teams faced each other three times in the eight-team tournament with India prevailing on all three occasions. Defending champions India refused to shake hands with Pakistani players during the matches.

The ICC, cricket’s governing body, did not state the specific nature of the offenses in its statement on Tuesday.

ESPNCricinfo reported in September that Rauf had made numerous gestures to indicate aircraft going down, while Farhan celebrated by holding his bat like a gun.

India captain Yadav made a remark dedicating their win over Pakistan on September 14 to the Indian armed forces, prompting the Pakistan Cricket Board to file a complaint against him to the ICC. Cricinfo reported on Tuesday that Bumrah was cited for a gesture he made during the final.

India, who won the final on September 28, refused to accept the trophy from Asian Cricket Council president and Pakistan’s interior minister Mohsin Naqvi.

Rauf, who received four demerit points for two offenses, misses Pakistan’s One-Day International (ODI) matches against South Africa on Tuesday and Thursday. He was also fined 30 percent of his match fees in two games.

Yadav was also fined 30 percent of his match fees in one match. Bumrah and Farhan were given official warnings.


Pakistan to introduce new navigation system to cut flight delays at Skardu, Gilgit and Chitral

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Pakistan to introduce new navigation system to cut flight delays at Skardu, Gilgit and Chitral

  • Pakistan Airports Authority says satellite-guided RNP-AR procedures will be in place by June 2026, pending a feasibility study
  • The system is expected to reduce weather-related delays and cancelations in Pakistan’s most popular mountain destinations

KARACHI: Pakistan said on Sunday it would introduce a new satellite-guided navigation system for flights to Skardu, Gilgit and Chitral by June 2026, aiming to curb chronic weather-related delays and cancelations at the three remote northern airports.

The destinations are among Pakistan’s most visited tourist sites and serve as gateways to the Himalayan and Karakoram ranges. Gilgit-Baltistan, which borders China, also holds strategic significance as part of the northern corridor linking the two neighbors.

Marking International Civil Aviation Day, the Pakistan Airports Authority (PAA) said it was accelerating aviation-sector upgrades, including the rollout of Required Navigation Performance – Authorization Required (RNP-AR) procedures.

RNP-AR is a high-precision, satellite-based approach system that enables aircraft to fly accurate, terrain-avoiding paths in low visibility, reducing weather-related disruptions at mountain airports.

“Pakistan Airports Authority is rapidly working on major projects for safe, efficient and modern aviation in the country,” the PAA said.

It added that RNP-AR flight procedures for Skardu, Gilgit and Chitral “will be implemented by June 2026,” subject to the findings of a consultant’s feasibility study.

The authority said the system would “significantly reduce weather-related flight delays and cancelations.”

The PAA also announced timelines for several other major upgrades, including terminal expansion at Lahore’s Allama Iqbal International Airport by September 2026 and runway modernization at Karachi’s Jinnah International Airport by January 2026.

Further works include the next upgrade phase at Skardu Airport and phase two of Muridke General Aviation Aerodrome, both due to begin next year.

New greenfield airports in Dera Ismail Khan, Sukkur and Faisalabad have also entered planning stages, the statement said.

Final sites have been approved for a new air-traffic control tower and rescue fire station at Karachi Airport, infrastructure the PAA said would strengthen air-traffic management and safety.

“Pakistan Airports Authority is leading the aviation sector toward a safer and more accessible future,” it said.