Before the mouthwatering and high-octane contest of 2017 ICC Champions Trophy final between arch-rivals India and Pakistan, a perfect picture of wicket-keeper batsman Mahendra Singh Dhoni surfaced over micro-blogging site Twitter which revealed he was carrying the five-month-old son of Pakistan’s limited-overs skipper Sarfraz Ahmed namely Abdullah in London.
After the picture went viral which was shared by senior Indian broadcaster and journalist Rajdeep Sardesai, the social media has praised the gesture of MS Dhoni which included his fans from Pakistan.
“It is impossible to not like Dhoni, good at everything he does #TeamBonding,” Tweets Nadir Daman.
It’s pertinent to note, Sarfraz got married in May 2015 with Syeda Khushbakht Shah, who’s also said to be in London to cheer for her husband.
Taking a moment, Sardesai took to Twitter while terming it as ‘sports beyond boundaries’ which further shows former Indian skipper Dhoni winning many hearts in Pakistan.
“Sarfaraz [Ahmed] be like: Abdullah is safer in Dhoni’s hands rather than [Kamran] Akmal’s,” posts Sarmad Ali on Twitter.
The former Australian cricketer-turned-commentator and coach Dean Jones was quick to react to the adorable picture while calling it as: ‘sport is better than politics’.
However, the viral picture was captured at Grange Hotels in London where both the teams were staying on Thursday and it’s expected that it would be a neck-to-neck contests between the two Asian forces well known in cricket, on Super Sunday at The Oval.
Earlier, Pakistan was written-off straightaway after losing against India in their tournament opener by 124 runs, but the side regrouped as a unit.
“Sarfraz Ahmed’s son with the world best Captain MS Dhoni, the reason I am his big fan from Pakistan,” wrote Ibrahim Yousafzai on his official Twitter handle.
The Men in Green fought hard to win three consecutive matches to meet their nemesis India in the finals of the ICC’s multilateral event.
“This photo of MS Dhoni with Sarfraz Ahmed’s son Abdullah is the cutest thing that you’ll see today,” Naila Inayat tweeted.
Moreover, Kohli-led India bounced back after losing out against Sri Lanka which further saw top-order in full command – to guide Men in Blue convincingly by nine wickets against Bangladesh, in the second semi-final after routeing South Africa following the comprehensive and all-round performance.
Both the teams have had a hard-fought practice session in nets which further saw Virat Kohli and Sarfraz Ahmed opting for a traditional photo-session with the coveted trophy before briefing the world media about the plans and preparations for the highly-anticipated game.
Here are the heart-warming reactions from the social media users witnessing Dhoni’s affection for kids while calling the ex-captain a ‘legend’:
A nice pic ahead of the Champions Trophy finals. @msdhoni with Sarfraz Ahmed baby: sports beyond boundaries!! #IndVsPak pic.twitter.com/8WNAlHzf4B
— Rajdeep Sardesai (@sardesairajdeep) June 17, 2017
MS Dhoni with son of Sarfraz#PakvsIndia#ICT pic.twitter.com/y20r3f0LMY
— Zainab Amjad? (@zainabamjad15) June 17, 2017
MS Dhoni with son of Pakistani Captain Sarfraz Ahmed.
Masha Allah. ? ?#PAKvIND #INDvPAK #CT17 #CT17Final pic.twitter.com/Iiyx2MA4J7
— abubakr (@amBakr271) June 17, 2017
Dhoni holding Sarfraz's son.
What an adorable picture! pic.twitter.com/ggKt25cy79— Zartash Chaudhry (@ZartashChaudhry) June 17, 2017
https://twitter.com/j_dhillon6/status/876084558915018752
https://twitter.com/JhonSuNOW/status/876161575794556928
#PAKvIND
Dhoni with Abdullah sarfaraz son of sarfraz ahmed ????
true cricket lover cant scroll down with out liking this picture ?? pic.twitter.com/ll9T0Q1qHd— فراست حیدر چشتی (@farasatziddi) June 18, 2017
https://twitter.com/ProfDeano/status/876177999564898304
@msdhoni with Sarfraz Ahmed's son; sports reduces tensions. Massive respect for the legend. pic.twitter.com/I8QdCvNz8A
— GVS (@GVS_News) June 17, 2017
https://twitter.com/SoheilKhanzada/status/876087068803428352