The legendary cricketer Sachin Tendulkar urged Indians to prevent “personal attacks” in sports after a national team Sikh player received a barrage of internet criticism after missing a catch during a match against Pakistan.
Arshdeep Singh received a lot of criticism after dropping an easy catch during a vital stretch of the Asia Cup match on Sunday. The majority of the criticism was directed at him for being a member of India’s Sikh minority.
Twitter users accused him of having ties to Pakistan, and his Wikipedia entry momentarily underwent modification to associate him with the Khalistan Sikh freedom movement.Additionally, he received a lot of tweets of support.
The greatest run scorer in history and current idol in India, Tendulkar, a former player, tweeted yesterday that “players representing the country give their best and play for the nation constantly.”
“We must continue to encourage them, and we must never forget that sports contain both victories and defeats. Let’s refrain from making personal remarks on cricket or any other sport, he wrote.
Singh, 23, was also tagged by 49-year-old Tendulkar, a member of India’s Hindu majority, who advised him to “keep working hard.”
Such attacks have occurred before against cricket players from India’s religious minority, where Hindus make up the majority of the population.