‘Are we just going to pretend’ - Rusty Theron accuses Haris Rauf of ball tampering during USA game

Pakistan kicked off their T20 World Cup 2024 campaign with a shock defeat against the co-hosts, the USA. The match went down to the wire into the Super Over, but the USA’s resilience helped the side pull off a major upset. 

After the game, veteran USA cricketer Rusty Theron was quick to take to X (formerly known as Twitter) and accuse Pakistan pacer Haris Rauf of ball tampering. Theron opined that Rauf was trying to tamper with the ball using his finger nail.

“@ICC are we just going to pretend Pakistan aren't scratching the hell out of this freshly changed ball? Reversing the ball that's just been changed 2 overs ago? You can literally see Harris Rauf running his thumb nail over the ball at the top of his mark. @usacricket #PakvsUSA,” Theron tweeted. 

USA register historic win against Pakistan

Speaking of the game between the USA and Pakistan, both sides locked horns in the 11th game of the tournament at the Grand Prairie Stadium in Dallas on Thursday, June 6. The game began with Pakistan coming in to bat first after losing the toss. 

The side got off to a slow start to the game as Babar Azam scored 44 runs in 43 deliveries, with Mohammad Rizwan departing for just nine runs. Shadab Khan added 40 runs on the board in the middle order alongside Shaheen Shah Afridi, who went unbeaten on a score of 23 runs as Pakistan posted a total of 159 runs in the first innings. 

As the USA came out to chase the target, skipper Monank Patel was the star of the show for the side. Scoring 50 runs in 38 deliveries, his performance was followed up by Andries Gous scoring 35 runs, with Aaron Jones adding 36* runs on the board as the match tied and went into the Super Over. 

The USA batted first and posted a total of 18 runs in the Super Over; in reply, Pakistan only managed to score 13 as the USA won the game.