WATCH: Afghanistan Pacer Naveen-ul-Haq Trolled With Virat Kohli Chants During ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 Match In Dharamsala

Afghanistan pacer Naveen-ul-Haq was heckled by the Dharamsala crowd with Virat Kohli 'chants' during their ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 match against Bangladesh on Saturday.

Afghanistan pacer Naveen-ul-Haq in action against Bangladesh during their Cricket World Cup 2023 match. (Photo: ANI)

Afghanistan pacer Naveen-ul-Haq was involved in a high-profile brawl against former India captain Virat Kohli during the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 season earlier this year. Naveen and Kohli had got into a fight after their IPL 2023 match between Royal Challengers Bangalore and Lucknow Super Giants in Lucknow earlier this year in which LSG mentor Gautam Gambhir also got involved.

While Kohli and Gambhir were docked 100 per cent of their match fees, Naveen-ul-Haq was docked 50 per cent of his match fees. The Afghanistan pacer made his first appearance in India since the IPL 2023 season as his side took on Bangladesh in match no. 3 of the ICC ODI Cricket World Cup 2023 at the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association stadium in Dharamsala on Saturday.

Naveen-ul-Haq was brutally trolled by the crowd in Dharamsala who were seen chanting Virat Kohli’s name to tease him. Naveen picked up 1/31 in 5.4 overs as Afghanistan lost their opening match to Bangladesh by 6 wickets.

WATCH Naveen-ul-Haq getting trolled with Virat Kohli chants in Dharamsala HERE…

Kohli Kohli chants infront of Naveen ul haq. We're massive Virat Kohli FC _pic.twitter.com/HOQfOPdGLO

— leisha (@katyxkohli17) October 7, 2023

Fans at Dharamshala cheekily chanted ‘Kohli, Kohli’ towards the young pacer, who has decided to retire from ODI cricket after the World Cup 2023, during a particular incident. Naveen-ul-Haq will be up against Virat Kohli when Afghanistan take on India in their second match of the Cricket World Cup 2023 at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi on Wednesday (October 11).

Meanwhile, Bangladesh captain Shakib Al Hasan, opting to bowl first after winning the toss, saw his decision pay off right from the inception of the match. Shakib himself dismissed Afghanistan’s opening batter Ibrahim Zadran for a modest 22 runs in the ninth over, providing an early momentum shift.

Rahmanullah Gurbaz managed to hold the fort for Afghanistan, contributing 47 runs from 62 balls. However, no other Afghan batter managed to surpass a score of 25. Shakib continued to put pressure, securing two additional wickets, completing a notable three-wicket haul.

Mehidy Hasan matched Shakib’s tally with three wickets of his own, aiding Bangladesh in confining Afghanistan to a total of 156 runs in 37.2 overs. Shoriful Islam, Taskin Ahmed, and Mustafizur Rahman also chipped in with one wicket apiece.

The commencement of Bangladesh’s innings took an unfortunate turn as they were quick to lose openers Tanzid Hasan and Liton Das in the fifth and seventh overs, respectively. The situation was stabilized and subsequently commandeered by No. 3 batter Mahidy Hasan and Najmul Hossain Shanto, who guided Bangladesh to reach the target in 34.4 overs.

Hasan compiled a sturdy 57 from 73 balls, while Shanto delivered an unbeaten 59 off 83. On the bowling side for Afghanistan, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Naveen-ul-Haq, and Azmatullah Omarzai each claimed a wicket.

Afghanistan coach and former England batter Jonathan Trott was disappointed by his team’s batting collapse in the match against Bangladesh. “I thought we obviously started well, close to 100 in 20 overs. And then we just had soft dismissals really. Guys giving their wicket away, going against what we had as a game plan with regards to that. We played, I thought, pretty well leading into the game against Sri Lanka. I think we got close to where we want to be playing in the warm-up games. But it's about dealing with the pressure of World Cup cricket and playing in major tournaments. So that's where we fell short today.

“I think we lost something like 73 for 9. Bowled out in 38 overs, something like that, 38 - 37. So that’s a disappointing thing and it’s really difficult to win cricket matches when you bat like that,” Trott said after the match on Saturday.