The India vs Pakistan Cricket World Cup 2023 clash in Ahmedabad witnessed Rohit Sharma's team securing a comprehensive 7-wicket victory over their arch-rivals. While India's strong all-round performance earned them a well-deserved win, there's a significant discussion on social media regarding non-cricketing incidents as well. Videos of individuals chanting 'Jai Shree Ram' slogans as Pakistan's wicketkeeper-batter Mohammad Rizwan headed to the dugout went viral, prompting former India cricketer Aakash Chopra to share his perspective on the matter.
In a video on his YouTube channel, Chopra questioned why only one person was targeted by fans. He suggested that a brief 20 or 30-second video clip couldn't provide the complete context.
"If you are getting a certain kind of behaviour if you have a problem although no one has said anything, only Mickey Arthur said, I haven't heard any Pakistan player speaking, but if anyone among them speaks, you might need to look slightly within that why it happened with only one guy. Why did it not happen with the others?" he said.
"The entire story is not there in 20 or 30-second clips. India is an extremely inclusive country and we treat everyone with love and a lot of people will stand witness to that. If someone has an agenda, they can peddle it."
Chopra delved further into the nuances of social media narratives, emphasizing that what a couple of video clips imply may not represent the entire atmosphere in the stadium, and it might not even be accurate.
"What you see is not always the entire truth and it's more than half the time not the truth on social media. If you see one or two clips and you feel that's what has happened with everyone, it's not necessary that's the truth”, he continued.
Chopra also pointed out that while there was a video of individuals targeting Rizwan, Afghanistan players like Rashid Khan, Mohammad Nabi, and others received significant support from Indian players at different venues.
On October 15, Afghanistan saw a huge crowd support at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in their game against the defending champions of the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup- England. Afghanistan caused one of the biggest upsets, if not the biggest, in the history of the ODI World Cup by defeating England by 69 runs marking it only their second win in the World Cups.
Pakistan's participation in the World Cup and the warm reception they received in Hyderabad and Ahmedabad have prompted mixed responses. Many cricket enthusiasts have argued that political differences should not impact the game, while others have raised concerns about Pakistan's involvement in cross-border conflicts and questioned the possibility of maintaining normal sports relations amid border tensions.