Lancashire offers apology for Pakistan fan after being accosted by stewards to take off his Pakistan shirt in the 4th Test.
Pakistan fan ejection at Old Trafford: Lancashire apologise for ‘any upset and offence caused’.
A fan was expelled from the Old Trafford Test match between England and India because he refused to cover his Pakistan team t-shirt, for which Lancashire has issued an apology.
The fan in question, Farooq Nazar, shared a video on social media that detailed the events that began when a security guard asked him to hide the jersey, which was a duplicate of Pakistan’s classic green limited-overs uniform.
According to the security guard, who claimed to be employed by Lancashire, “control” had instructed him to request that the shirt be covered. Nazar declined. He was subsequently escorted away by police officers.
According to a statement from Lancashire, “asked to leave the stadium by stewards and police officers due to unacceptable behaviour directed towards the stewarding team”.
The club has since carried out an internal review and expressed regret for “any upset and offence caused which was not intended and will review its procedures for handling similar situations in the future.” The event occurred on the final day of the Test, a Sunday.
However, Lancashire clarified that their handling of the situation with Nazar was affected by a different incident that occurred at the ground on the Saturday of the Test between a group of Indian and Pakistani spectators.
“Firstly, we wish to make it clear that there was no intention to remove the individual simply for wearing a Pakistan cricket shirt,” the club said in a statement. “The approach taken was informed by an incident on Saturday, during which a group of supporters waved a Pakistan national flag, leading to tensions with nearby Indian fans. In that case, our stewards were able to de-escalate the situation by respectfully asking the individuals to put the flag away, which they did without hesitation.
“In light of this context, our team adopted a precautionary, safety-first approach on Sunday. A stand supervisor politely asked the individual to cover his shirt in the interest of his own safety and to avoid any potential escalation. Despite several courteous requests from the supervisor and the response team, the individual repeatedly declined to comply.”