Peshawar, Jul 27: In yet another cross-border love story, a Chinese woman has travelled to Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province to marry the man whom she befriended and fell in love with on social media, police said on Thursday.

The woman, identified as Gao Feng, arrived in Islamabad last week by road from China via Gilgit on a three-month visit visa. The 21-year-old was picked up by her 18-year-old friend Javed, a resident of Bajaur tribal district bordering Afghanistan, they said.

Javed took the woman to his maternal uncle's home in Samarbagh tehsil of Lower Dir District instead of his hometown due to the security situation in Bajaur District bordering Afghanistan.

According to police, both were in contact through Snapchat for the last three years and the friendship developed into a love affair.

Gao married Javed on Wednesday after converting to Islam and her new name is Kiswa, the man's maternal cousin Izzatullah Khan told PTI over the phone.

Izzatullah said Gao arrived in Islamabad on July 20 where he and Javed received her. From there they came to Lower Dir District on July 21 where Gao stayed at Izzatullah's residence in Samarbagh.

Javed and Gao performed nikkah on Wednesday and then left for Islamabad after the local police and district administration convinced them that her stay in the district was not safe due to security reasons and the Holy Month of Ramadan, Izzatullah said.

Izzatullah further said that Javed is pursuing a Computer Science course at Bajaur Degree College and will do a court marriage with Gao in China.

Police have also confirmed these details.

While Gao will return to China in a few days, Javed will stay back in Pakistan, Izzatullah said.

Javed will go to China after completing his education in Pakistan which will take almost a year, he added.

Earlier, during Gao's stay in Samarbagh, the District Police Officer of Lower Dir District Ziauddin told the media that she was provided full security. However, she is not being provided free movement due to Muharram and security concerns in the area.

The travel documents of the Chinese woman are in order, police said.

The news of the Chinese girl travelling to Pakistan for the pursuit of love came at a time when in a similar incident, a 34-year-old married Indian woman Anju from Rajasthan travelled to the Upper Dir district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to meet her 29-year-old Pakistani friend Nasrulla whom she she met on Facebook. Anju later married Nasrulla after converting to Islam and now has a new name, Fatima.

In another similar incident, Seema Ghulam Haider, a 30-year-old Pakistani mother of four, sneaked into India to live with Sachin Meena, a 22-year-old Hindu man she got in touch with while playing PUBG in 2019.

Seema and Sachin live in the Rabupura area of Greater Noida, near Delhi, where he runs a provision store, according to Uttar Pradesh Police.

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Lucknow (PTI): Pacer Akash Singh caught the eye with his unique celebration during Lucknow Super Giants' win over Chennai Super Kings, pulling out a piece of paper from his pocket after a wicket, a gesture he said was aimed at "motivating" himself and "asserting dominance" over batters.

The left-arm pacer pulled out a scrappy piece of paper after each of the three wickets he took in LSG seven-wicket win over CSK, with the message reading: "Akki on fire -- Akash knows how to take wickets in T20 cricket.

The 24-year-old, who began his IPL journey with Rajasthan Royals and was part of Chennai Super Kings’ title-winning campaign in 2023 before moving to Lucknow Super Giants, registered his best IPL figures with 3 for 26 on Friday.

"'Akki knows how to take wickets in T20 cricket', right?" Akash said when asked about the message on the piece of paper, adding that it serves as a source of motivation and helps him focus on dominating batters and delivering stronger performances for the team.

"Different things motivate different people. Some days I show the paper, some days I don't, but it reflects my mindset on that particular day. When you carry a piece of paper with something written on it, you manifest things and the most important part is when those manifestations actually materialise," he added.

Akash, who hails from Bharatpur in Rajasthan, said the strong backing from the Lucknow Super Giants support staff over the last two years had played a huge role in his growth as a cricketer.

"I've been with LSG for two years and the most important thing has been the backing from the coaches, even when I'm not in the playing XI. This year we have Bharat Arun sir, last year Zaheer sir was there...Tom Moody. The way they guide us, prepare us and keep us ready for opportunities is very important when there are 25 players in the squad," he said.

"When you are not playing, you naturally seek backing and every player wants to make the most of the opportunities he gets. The support from the captain also matters a lot and with Rishabh bhaiya backing you, the confidence grows and you are able to perform better," Akash said, referring to Rishabh Pant.

Akash said Pant had asked him to trust his strengths ahead of the clash against CSK.

"He told me that the new ball is my strength and that I can swing it both ways. So I just tried to make the best use of my skills. The wicket also had good bounce, so I focused on using the bouncer effectively,” added Akash.

On his success against CSK, Akash said his experience of playing in the IPL since 2020, including a stint with CSK, helped him understand the opposition batters better, while backing his own strengths with the ball also played a key role in his impressive spell.

"Obviously, when you play in the IPL and have shared the dressing room with some players, you understand their strengths and weaknesses. My focus was first to back my own strengths, then exploit their weaknesses and also make the best use of what the wicket was offering," Akash said.

Akash said he had sensed over the last two-three games that an opportunity could come his way after being repeatedly told to "be ready", though he admitted he was unfortunate not to get a chance earlier.

"Two days before the match, during practice, I was told to be ready," he said.

Clarifying that he had not been carrying the piece of paper in anticipation, Akash said he often notes down thoughts that could help improve his game..

"Whenever I’m alone or about to sleep, any thought that comes to my mind which can help my cricket, I write it down. The other night I got this thought and jotted it down on paper," he added.