Pakistan cricket is in the headlines for all the wrong reasons. In the recently concluded T20I series against Australia at home, Salman Ali Agha’s side swept Australia to win their first T20 series since 2018. In the third and final T20I on Sunday, something controversial happened. Australia failed to score even 100 runs in pursuit of a target of 208 runs and ended up with just 96 runs.

During the match, Australia’s Cooper Connolly was stumped by Pakistan wicketkeeper Khawaja Nafi off the bowling of Mohammad Nawaz. Despite the controversy that befell the Australian all-rounder, he should not have been dropped as per the current cricket laws. Connolly batted and Australia struggled at 82-6 and almost lost the game. He lasted just two deliveries and became Nawaz’s fifth wicket of the match.

The comedy of errors between Pakistan and Australia

The left-hander tried to hit a six but missed the ball entirely as the ball took a sharp turn off the leg side, with wicketkeeper Khawaja Nafi catching the ball cleanly and completing what looked like a relatively easy stump.

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However, during replays, it was discovered that Nafi, who caught the ball with both hands, actually broke the stumps without the ball with his left hand. The incident went completely unnoticed during the game. Although the referee failed to detect this, the decision is likely to be overturned.

What do the ICC rules say about culling and stumping?

According to the ICC rulebook, a wicket is considered fair-breaking only if the fielder (or in this case, the wicketkeeper) holds the ball with the same hand in order to dislodge the wicket or uproot the wicket.

Rule 29.2.1 of the ICC Men’s T20 Conditions of Play states: “A wicket is fairly broken if the fielder removes the stump completely from the top of the stumps or knocks the stumps out of the ground with his hands or arms, provided that the ball is held in the hand or hands so used, or in the hands of the arm so used.”

In this situation, Nafi is not holding the ball; He once moved the bail money. That way, Connolly wouldn’t be out. This isn’t the first controversy to occur in the series. Earlier, Cameron Green made a ‘clucking gesture’ after getting rid of Usman Tariq in the second T20I. The latter has been under the spotlight as he was reported by many referees during the Pakistan Super League in 2024 and 2025 respectively.

Here is the video:

Khawaja Nafi is awesome too😂😂

How come no one noticed? #Pakistan #Australia #cricket pic.twitter.com/4d2Dj53M1I

— Azeem Rafiq (@AzeemRafiq30) February 2, 2026

Will Pakistan participate in the T20 World Cup?

The Pakistan government on Sunday finally gave the go-ahead to travel to Sri Lanka for the upcoming 2026 T20 World Cup following the Men in Green’s overwhelming win over Australia.

However, the government also mentioned that they will not play the Indian team and will boycott the match scheduled for February 15. This has created a new stir in the cricketing world with fans confused as to whether the best match of the major ICC event will take place.

Also read: Shahid Afridi heartbroken as Pakistan boycotts India 2026 T20 World Cup clash