Ex-cricketers rally behind Shami after online abuse
NEW DELHI: Several former Indian cricket stars rushed to support Mohammad Shami after he was singled out for vicious and sustained online abuse that focused on his religion in the aftermath of India’s 10-wicket loss to Pakistan in their opening game in the T20 World Cup.
The 31-year-old pacer, who has been a star performer across formats, is the lone Muslim player in India World T20 squad. He found his Instagram account flooded with abusive messages that went to the extent of calling him a “traitor”, and asking for his removal from the team.
Among those from the cricket fraternity leading the messages in support of Shami was Sachin Tendulkar, who condemned the trolling on Twitter. “When we support #TeamIndia, we support every person who represents Team India,” Tendulkar tweeted. “@MdShami11 is a committed, world-class bowler. He had an off day like any other sportsperson can have. I stand behind Shami & Team India.”
Former left-arm pacer Irfan Pathan, who is part of the broadcast team for the World Cup, tweeted: “Even I was part of #IndvsPak battles on the field where we have lost but never told to go to Pakistan! I’m talking about a few years back. THIS CRAP NEEDS TO STOP. #Shami”
Former India spinner Harbhajan and current leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal, who was not included in the World Cup squad, also came to Shami’s support. “We love you @MdShami11,” wrote Harbhajan on Twitter. Chahal added: “We are so proud of you @MdShami11 bhaiya.” Virender Sehwag tweeted: “The online attack on Shami is shocking and we stand by him. He is a champion and anyone who wears the India cap has India in their hearts far more than any online mob. With you Shami. Agle match mein dikado jalwa.”
However, till the time of going to print on Monday, no player from the Indian squad in the UAE had spoken out against the attacks, prompting some commentators to question this omission from a team that made a statement by taking a knee in support of the Black Lives Matter movement before the start of the match. “Team India your BLM knee-taking counts for nothing if you can’t stand up for your teammate who is being horribly abused and trolled on social media,” Omar Abdullah, the former chief minister of Jammu & Kashmir, said on Twitter.
The reference was to the India team taking a knee in support of the BLM movement before the start of the match. The Pakistan team, after skippers Virat Kohli and Babar Azam agreed to the gesture, also supported it by holding their hands to their hearts. The anti-racism BLM gesture has become common across sport over the last two years, and West Indies and England players also took the knee before their Super 12 match a day earlier. Both teams feature black players—they were also the first cricket teams to adopt the gesture, back in June 2020, when the BLM movement was at its most heightened state after the murder of African-American George Floyd, who was killed by a police officer in Minneapolis.
In Punjab, students from Kashmir said they were beaten up. A student at a technology institute in Sangrur said dozens of men armed with hockey sticks attacked them as they watched the closing stages of the game. “It is distressing to hear about the incidents of physical & verbal assault against Kashmiri students in a college in Punjab. I request @CHARANJITCHANNI ji to direct @PunjabPoliceInd to look in to this & also to reassure the students studying in Punjab,” Abdullah tweeted.
Pakistan PM Imran Khan did not make things any better in the middle of the prevailing tension. “We have excellent relations with China, but if somehow we improve our relationship with India—I know after last night’s thrashing by the Pakistan team, it’s not a very good time to talk about improving relations with India,” he said.
The militaries of two countries have been on high alert since 2019, when India conducted an airstrike targeting militants inside Pakistan following a suicide bombing at Pulwama in Kashmir that killed 40 Indian troopers. In February this year, India and Pakistan agreed to adhere to the 2003 ceasefire on the Line of Control (LoC) in Kashmir following months of back-channel contacts between the two sides. There were calls before the India-Pakistan match to call off the game amid a strain in the bilateral ties.