New Delhi: Former Indian cricketer and 2007 World T20I and 2011 World Cup-winning player Harbhajan Singh has slammed the Indian fans for abusing Australian cricketers and their wives on social media after their ODI World Cup 2023 final victory over Rohit Sharma-led side at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Sunday. The former Indian off-spinner also stressed that the Men in Blue lost to a better team in the decider and that maintaining sanity and dignity is paramount.
After Australia won the prestigious trophy, cricketers Travis Head and Glenn Maxwell’s wives have been constantly targeted on social media, with some fans giving them rape threats after the left-handed Head smashed a match-winning century in Ahmedabad. Maxwell’s wife, Vini Raman, has also issued a statement on Instagram, hitting back at the detractors.
This was also highlighted by Vini Raman the wife of Australian all-rounder Glen Maxwell. “Can’t belive this needs to saud BUT you can be Indian and also support the country of your birth where you have bee raised and more importantly the team your husbanbd + father of your child plays in #nobrainer. Take a chill pill and direct that outrage towards more important issuue” she said in her Instagram post.
Australian cricketer Mitchell Marsh was also trolled on social media for posting an image of himself with his feet on the World Cup Trophy.
Absolutely vile and shocking. Indian cricket fans giving r@pe threats to the wife and daughter of Travis Head after the WC win.
His daughter is only 1 year old pic.twitter.com/livmWjlioH
— Singh (@APSvasii) November 19, 2023
Harbhajan, meanwhile, took to X, and questioned the behaviour of the Indian fans in trolling the Aussie players. “Reports of trolling of family members of Australian cricket players is completely in bad taste. We played well but lost the final to better cricket by the Aussies. That’s it. Why troll the players and their families? Requesting all cricket fans to stop such behaviour. Sanity and dignity are more important.”
Reports of trolling of family members of Australian cricket players is completely in bad taste. We played well but lost the final to better cricket by the Aussies. That’s it. Why troll the players and their families? Requesting all cricket fans to stop such behaviour. Sanity and…
— Harbhajan Turbanator (@harbhajan_singh) November 21, 2023
The Indian cricket team will now compete in a five-match T20I series against Australia which will begin on Thursday in Visakhapatnam. Number one ranked T20I batter Suryakumar Yadav will lead Men in Blue during the five-match T20I series against six time champions Australia at home, starting from November 23 onwards.
“The men’s selection committee announced the squad for the upcoming 5-match T20I series against Australia scheduled to start from November 23, 2023 in Visakhapatnam,” said a statement by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).
Right handed batter Shreyas Iyer will join the squad as vice-captain for the last two T20Is in Raipur and Bengaluru. For the first three T20Is, opening batter Ruturaj Gaikwad will be the deputy of Suryakumar.
India’s squad: Suryakumar Yadav (Captain), Ruturaj Gaikwad (vice-captain), Ishan Kishan, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Tilak Varma, Rinku Singh, Jitesh Sharma (wk), Washington Sundar, Axar Patel, Shivam Dubey, Ravi Bishnoi, Arshdeep Singh, Prasidh Krishna, Avesh Khan, Mukesh Kumar.
