Fact Check: Afghan player Ibrahim Zadran’s century celebration was inspired by Mahashivratri? Here’s the truth
A video has been circulating with the claim that Afghanistan’s Zardan celebrated his century against England by playing Damru and offering prayers to Bholenath.
By Md Mahfooz Alam Published on 1 March 2025 6:12 PM IST
Claim: Afghanistan’s Ibrahim Zadran celebrated his century against England by mimicking the act of playing the Damru, Lord Shiva’s divine instrument, and offering prayers with folded hands.
Fact: The claim is false. Zadran was gesturing towards his teammate Rashid Khan in the dressing room, expressing gratitude for his guidance.
On February 26, 2025, Afghanistan secured a historic eight-run victory over England in the ICC Champions Trophy, marking their first-ever win in the tournament and knocking England out.
Opener Ibrahim Zadran starred with a record-breaking 177 off 146 balls, the highest individual score in Champions Trophy history, surpassing Ben Duckett’s previous record.
Meanwhile, a video of Zadran celebrating his century has been circulating on social media. It shows him making an anticlockwise hand gesture, followed by a greeting with folded hands. Social media users claim that since the match took place on the day of Mahashivratri, Zadran celebrated by mimicking the act of playing the Damru, Lord Shiva’s divine instrument, and offering a prayer with folded hands.
A Facebook user shared the video and wrote, “Yesterday, Afghanistan’s Ibrahim scored a century—watch his reaction! On the occasion of Mahashivratri, he played the damaru and offered prayers to Bholenath. Seeing this scene, all of Pakistan was furious.” (Translated from Hindi)
An archive of a similar post on X can be seen here.
Fact Check
NewsMeter found the claim to be false, as Zadran’s celebratory gestures were not related to offering prayers or Mahashivratri.
We conducted relevant keyword searches but found no credible media reports linking Zadran’s celebration to Mahashivratri. However, a February 27 report by Cricket Times, titled “Ibrahim Zadran explains the reason behind his celebration after completing a century against England,” provided clarity on the gesture.
According to the report, after reaching his sixth ODI century, Zadran celebrated with a distinctive gesture—mimicking a leg-spin bowling action before folding his hands in gratitude toward the dressing room. The celebration was a tribute to his teammate Rashid Khan, inspired by a pre-match conversation between them.
The report further mentioned that during the innings break, Zadran explained the reason behind his celebration, stating that his chat with Rashid before the match had motivated him to deliver a strong performance.
Since Rashid Khan is a leg-spinner, it is evident that Zadran, through his anticlockwise hand gesture, was trying to grab Rashid’s attention in the dressing room. He then expressed his gratitude with folded hands, acknowledging their pre-match conversation, which had motivated him to deliver a stellar performance.
Furthermore, we found a video of Zadran speaking to the broadcaster, published by the International Cricket Council (ICC) on February 26, with the caption: “Ibrahim Zadran explains 'that' special gesture which came after he got to his landmark century.”
The video includes clips of Zadran’s celebration and his explanation, where he states, “Before the game, I had a chat with Rashid. Whenever I chat with him, I score runs. [That’s why] when I reached my century, I thanked Rashid for the chatting.”
Therefore, we conclude that the claim is false.
Did Afghanistan qualify for the semi-final?
Afghanistan knocked out England of the semifinal race from the Champions Trophy by defeating them in the match played on February 26 at Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore. However, with the Afghanistan vs. Australia match being cancelled due to rain on February 28, Afghanistan’s chances of reaching the semifinals are now minimal.
