The Champions Trophy continues to be marred by controversies even after its commencement. The uproar over Pakistan’s logo being “erased” from the Bangladesh-India match in Dubai hasn’t settled yet, and now another embarrassing moment has unfolded in Lahore.
As the England-Australia match was about to begin at Gaddafi Stadium, an awkward situation arose—the Indian national anthem was mistakenly played instead of England’s.
The incident occurred when England’s players lined up for their national anthem. Suddenly, “Jana Gana Mana” echoed through the stadium speakers. The error was quickly realized, and the Indian anthem was stopped to play England’s correctly. However, by then, the damage was done. Social media erupted with criticism, with many slamming the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) for poor organization.
Despite the mishap, England’s players remained unfazed. After losing the toss, they put up a strong batting performance against their arch-rivals, Australia. At the time of writing, England had reached 200 for 2 in 30 overs. Ben Duckett was unbeaten on 92, while Joe Root stood firm on 68.
Earlier, England lost opener Phil Salt (10) and Jamie Smith (15) within 43 runs, but Root and Duckett stabilized the innings with a solid 157-run partnership.
Both England and Australia are in Group B, alongside Afghanistan and South Africa.
