Zayn Malik sported a slicked back ponytail as he and the rest of his One Direction band mates performed on the X Factor UK finale on Sunday. Zayn has been wearing his hair a variety of ways recently, but first wore his hair in a ponytail at the NRJ Music Awards in Cannes, France on Saturday. Apparently he liked it so much, he went for a repeat performance on Sunday. Did he receive a thumbs up or thumbs down for his new style?

First off, it must be mentioned that no one should make fun of Zayn’s hair unless they want to bring Harry Styles into the conversation. That guy has some sort of deserted bird’s nest sitting atop his head. There’s no way Zayn Malik’s ponytail could look even half that bad.

The Daily Mail actually reports that fans took to Zayn Malik’s new ‘do.

.@zaynmalik rocks ponytail AGAIN as @onedirection joins @ronniewood on stage for #XFactorFinal http://t.co/j0S58ASMFh pic.twitter.com/Agei4n4zQS

— Mirror TV (@MirrorTV) December 14, 2014

“Zayn is the only male that can get away with his hair in a ponytail,” a source tells them.

Simon Cowell lauded Zayn and the rest of One Direction at the X Factor finale, saying how proud he is of all they have accomplished. He didn’t mention Zayn Malik or Harry Styles’s hair, however.

“I still can’t watch the moment when One Direction came third. I was so arrogant about the fact we were going to win,” he said. “Even though they’ve done well, I still would have liked for history to have said they won The X Factor.”

Do you find anything wrong with Zayn Malik’s ponytail? Would you rather see him get rid of it or see Harry Styles do something with the bird’s nest instead–of given the choice of one or the other?