Pakistan's Lahore Qalandars 'Tea Was Fantastic' Tweet Resurfaces After Rajeev Shukla's Champions Trophy Visit

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) vice-president, Rajeev Shukla, made a recent visit to Pakistan amidst all the political relationship between the two countries during the second semifinal of the Champions Trophy 2025 at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore between New Zealand and South Africa.

It grabbed eyeballs as the BCCI fought a lot to be firm on their stance of not travelling to their neighboring country due to the security reasons. The International Cricket Council (ICC) shifted the game for Rohit Sharma-led side to the Dubai International Cricket Stadium despite PCB chairman, Mohsin Naqvi’s dissatisfaction with the hybrid model.

Indian fans’ reply to Lahore Qalandars’ old tweet ‘Tea is Fantastic’ in 2023

The Lahore Qalandars, the franchise from the Pakistan Super League (PSL), erupted into a controversy with a tasteless tweet as they wanted to make fun of India and their armed forces two years ago. Qalandars shared a pic of Hussain Talat strolling on the field with a cup of tea.

Also Read: BCCI To Release New IPL 2025 Schedule? Faces Security Concerns For This Game

“Ye ty ‘Tea is Fantastic’ hogya.” They wrote on the social media. The ‘Tea is Fantastic’ phase was about Indian Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman’s words when Pakistan’s army asked him about the tea’s taste upon his capture.

Ye tu "Tea is Fantastic" hogya - @HussainTallat12 #QalandarHum #HBLPSL8 pic.twitter.com/fVzjKIq0ks

— Lahore Qalandars (@lahoreqalandars) February 16, 2023

That incident took place three years ago, after the Pulwama attack when the Indian Air Force shot down the fighter planes of the neighboring country. Pakistan’s army kept Abhinandan for three days after the aircraft crashed, as they also released a video in which Abhinandan’s ‘Tea was fantastic’ reply had gone viral on social platforms.

Many Indian fans went after the tweet from the Lahore franchise. And the surprise grew when the Qalandars decided not to delete the post despite being told several times. That was the time when both the boards were discussing the potential venue for the Asia Cup 2023, which later on took place in both Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

Rajeev Shukla’s tea-sipping picture grows old controversy

The PCB invited board members from all the participating sides to visit their country for the second semifinal between New Zealand and South Africa as they won’t have the chance to host the final of the tournament due to India’s qualification as the high-voltage clash will take place at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium.

Shukla was seen to be sipping a cup of tea in the afternoon during the game in the presence of Mohsin Naqvi and the other board members. Many journalists of Pakistan tweeted his picture in reference to the ‘fantastic tea.’

“PCB Chairman Mohsin Naqvi attends the ICC #ChampionsTrophy semi-final at Gaddafi Stadium alongside BCCI Vice-President Rajeev Shukla. Officials from Bangladesh, New Zealand, South Africa, and Zimbabwe cricket boards are also watching the #NZ vs SA match.” The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) media posted on social media.

Remember...💪🇵🇰

The tea was FANTASTIC...😂

Now Shukla Ji enjoying Fantastic tea in Gaddafi stadium 🇵🇰💪😍❤️#MohsinNaqvi #PakistanCricket #ChampionsTrophy2025 pic.twitter.com/Vv4ovgOVGp

— Qadir Khawaja (@iamqadirkhawaja) March 5, 2025

Pakistan disqualified from the Champions Trophy 2025 due to poor performance

Since the start of 2025, the Green Brigade’s performance in the 50-over format has gone down. Quite surprisingly, despite winning three successive ODI series in Australia, South Africa, and Zimbabwe, they failed to win the final of the home tri-series against the Blackcaps.

Also Read: Alastair Cook Levels Serious Allegations On Brendon McCullum After England's Champions Trophy

Mohammad Rizwan-led side started the eight-team tournament against the Kiwis at the National Stadium in Karachi before they faced another defeat against India in Dubai. In both encounters, they displayed poor performances with both the bat and ball in hand.

Their last league game against Bangladesh at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium ended in a no-result due to the persistent rain, as they got eliminated in the eight-team tournament in less than a week.