Indian bowling line-up’s backbone Jasprit Bumrah widely considered a modern day great was subjected to incessant trolling that continued on for days after he delivered a no-ball to Pakistan opener Fakhar Zaman. That ball flipped Pakistan’s fate on its head as Zaman went on to playing a match-defining innings, helping the nation secure their maiden and only ICC Champions Trophy title to date.
That fateful day for India, and a golden memory for Pakistan was June 18, 2017. Venue, Kennington Oval in London.
As for Bumrah, still in his early days for India, was reduced to cultural and policing memes across the nation for his iconic error in the big-ticket final final between India and Pakistan.
Fakhar Zaman ‘Out’ For 3
Bowling the first delivery of the third over in the first innings
of Pakistan, Bumrah successfully removed the opener Fakhar Zaman when he nicked one to wicketkeeper Mahendra Singh Dhoni who pouched a straightforward catch.
Indian team soon broke into celebrations when the on-field umpire Marais Erasmus asked the Men in Blue to cut it short. A replay on the big screen confirmed that Bumrah had bowled an illegal delivery, with his foot overstepping the safety zone. Bumrah returned to his mark and match went on as usual. Zaman, however, embraced the lifeline gifted to him by India as he went on to score a blistering 114. His centurion knock was sprinkled with 12 boundaries and 3 sixes.
Pakistan eventually ended the proceedings with a daunting total of 338 runs at a loss of just four wickets in 50 overs. Earlier, Zaman and Azhar Ali stitched an opening partnership of 128 runs. Ali departed for 59 runs. The next batter, Babar Azam, looked comfortable in the middle, falling four short of a half-century. Mohammed Hafeez contributed an unbeaten 57.
India Face A Rare Collapse
Historically dominant over their arch rivals in the ICC tournaments, India had a disastrous start with star batter Rohit Sharma returning to the pavillion in the very first over of the run chase. Virat Kohli followed him soon for 5. Shikhar Dhawan (21) and Yuvraj Singh (22) tried to stabilise the innings before surrendering to the Pakistan bowling attack. Mohammad Amir breathed fire as he wreak havoc and ran through the top three Indian batters. Hassan Ali picking three scalps ensured India never got the chance to get on their feet.
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Indian middle-order appeared sub-par with MS Dhoni and Kedar Jadhav adding 4 and 9 runs respectively. This was when Hardik Pandya decided to take matters into his own hands, playing a blinder of an innings of 43-ball 76.
Pandya, however, was left stranded and received no assistance from the other end. India were bowled out for 158 while chasing 339. Pakistan, led by Sarfaraz Ahmed, won the coveted title by registering a thumping win by 180 runs. Remarkably, Pakistan had entered the tournament as the lowest-ranked team at number eight position. The Men in Green became the first lowest-ranked team to lift the prestigious title.
All Eyes On Jasprit Bumrah
Bumrah was instantly sidelined and blamed for India’s crushing defeat to the rival nation. The pacer faced incredible pushback online as he was trolled and abused across the country for the days that followed.
OTD in 2017, Pakistan conquered The Oval & defeated India to win the ICC Champions Trophy. 🏆🇵🇰
– A day every Pakistan cricket fan will remember forever. ❤️ pic.twitter.com/g6764wJ30f
— Sheri. (@CallMeSheri1_) June 18, 2026
But the trolling wasn’t limited to the Internet. The mocking reached the streets of Jaipur when Jaipur Traffic Police used Bumrah’s overstepping image as a cautionary tale in their controversial road safety billboard campaign.
The ad read: “Don’t cross the line. You know it can be costly”.
Bumrah was understandably upset and felt disrespected by the public humiliation. “well done Jaipur traffic police this shows how much respect you get after giving your best for the country…” Bumrah wrote back to the Jaipur Traffic Police on X.
@traffic_jpr well done Jaipur traffic police this shows how much respect you get after giving your best for the country. pic.twitter.com/y0PU6v9uEc
— Jasprit Bumrah (@Jaspritbumrah93) June 23, 2017
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He put out another post soon and wrote, “But don’t worry I won’t make fun of the mistakes which you guys make at your work… because I believe humans can make mistakes.”
Following the pacer’s retort, the officials took down their meme and posted several tweets stating that the officials had encashed on the meme to spread awareness about traffic rules.
“You are a youth icon & an inspiration for all of us,” Jaipur Traffic Police wrote.
“We only intended to create more awareness about traffic rules,” the second tweet read.
“Dear @jaspritbumrah93, our intent was not to hurt your sentiments or the sentiments of millions of cricket fans,” a third soon followed.
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