Pakistan's opener, Sahibzada Farhan, pleaded not guilty to a code of conduct violation he was accused of for displaying a gun-firing celebration in the Asia Cup match against arch-rivals India.

Farhan told the International Cricket Council (ICC) in a hearing on Friday that his action was just the "traditional way of celebrating in his ethnic Pakhtun tribe". After the hearing, the ICC cleared both players for the final, with Rauf fined 30 per cent of his match fees, while Farhan got a warning without any financial penalty.

Farhan's celebration after scoring a fifty was widely seen as a reference to the diplomatic tensions between India and Pakistan, especially since the terrorist attack in Kashmir's Pahalgam in April.

India and Pakistan were engaged in a war-like situation after the Pahalgam attack that led to the death of 26 civilians.

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Farhan had an indifferent view in his post-match interaction, where he said: "That (celebration) just happened in the moment. I do not do a lot of celebrations after scoring a fifty. But, it suddenly came to my mind to celebrate today. I did that. I don't know how people will take it. I don't care about that."

Meanwhile, Pakistani pacer Haris Rauf was also questioned by the ICC over his "abusive language and aggressive gestures" during the India match. India and Pakistan are set to clash in the Asia Cup final on Sunday. 

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