New Delhi: Team India skipper Virat Kohli on Saturday slammed 'spineless people' and said it was disappointing to see that for some people making fun of others has become a source of entertainment.
After India vs Pakistan T20 World Cup match, speedster Mohammed Shami was subjected to online abuse as some merciless trolls on social media linked Shami's dismal bowling performance with his religion.
India lost to Babar Azam-led Pakistan by 10 wickets in the ICC Men's T20 World Cup match played in Dubai. Shami had a poor outing against Pakistan as he turned out to be India's most expensive bowler, conceding 43 runs in 3.5 overs.
"I will say a pathetic thing that a human being can do (attacking on someone's religion). Every one has right to voice their opinions and what they feel about a certain situation. And I personally never ever thought of discriminating against someone over their religion. It is very sacred and personal thing for every human being," Virat Kohli said in the pre-match press conference, ANI reported.
"People take out their frustration and have no understanding about what we do in the field. They have no understanding that someone like Mohammad Shami has won India 'n' number of matches. He is our primary bowler with Jasprit Bumrah when it comes to making an impact in the game. If people can overlook that and his passion for the country, I honestly don't want to waste any minute of my life on them. Our brotherhood cannot be shaken," he further said.
"Well, there is a good reason that we are playing on the field and not some spineless people on social media that have no courage to speak to any individuals in person and hide behind the identities and go after the people through social media. Making fun of people and has become a source of entertainment in today's world which has become so unfortunate and so sad to see because this is literally the lowest level of human potential that one can operate at and this is how I look at these people," Kohli added.
"We as individuals understand what we want to do on-field and strength of character and mental toughness we have and precisely what we are doing what we doing on-field and none of these people is even in the vicinity to even imagine doing something like that. They don't have the courage or strength to do that and that is how I see things. And all this drama that has been created outside is purely based on people's frustration, their lack of self-confidence, their lack of compassion and hence they find it so amusing to go after people."
"We as a group understand how we need to stick together, how we need to back individuals, how we need to focus on our strengths. People on the outside portray it that India can't afford to lose the game, that's none of our business because we play sport and we know how sports work. So what people think outside is no value whatsoever in our group," he explained.
India will clash against New Zealand in the Super 12 stages of the ICC Men's T20 World Cup match on Sunday at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium.
"Not one game is more important than other, every game of cricket is important and so will be the case in the next game," Kohli said.