Shama Mohamed’s jibe at Rohit Sharma fuels another Congress-cricket controversy

Congress spokesperson Shama Mohamed ignited a social media storm on Sunday night with a controversial post aimed at India captain Rohit Sharma In her nowdeleted post Mohamed declared that Rohit was too fat for a sportsman and went on to call him the most unimpressive captain India has ever hadShama Mohameds nowdeleted posts on Rohit SharmaNaturally the Internet did not take kindly to her unsolicited critique Fans cricket experts and even the Board of Control for Cricket in India BCCI Secretary Devajit Saikia were quick to condemn her remarks Mohamed however attempted to clarify her stance on Monday arguing that her comments were generic and further remarked ldquoWhat is wrong in saying It is a democracyhellipldquoIt was a generic tweet about the fitness of a sportsperson It was not bodyshaming I always believed a sportsperson should be fit and I felt he was a bit overweight so I just tweeted about that I have been attacked for no reason When I compared him with previous captains I put in a statement I have the right What is wrong in saying It is a democracy she told ANIThis is not the first time the Congress party has found itself embroiled in cricketrelated controversies In 2021 national media coordinator Radhika Khera triggered another social media uproar following a tweet that many perceived as celebrating Indiarsquos 10wicket loss to Pakistan in the T20 World CupShortly after the humiliating defeat Khera tweeted ldquo So bhakts got a taste of your own medicine Managed to get yourselves insultedrdquo Outrage ensued with many accusing her of reveling in Indiarsquos downfall As backlash mounted Khera scrambled to defend herself claiming that her words had been twisted and turned and that her post had no reference whatsoever to cricket or anyone losing or winningAlso ReadEXCLUSIVE lsquoRohit Sharma isnrsquot playing gully cricketrsquo Childhood coach blasts Cong spokesperson over lsquofatshamingrsquo remarksThen there was the infamous 2019 jersey controversy The Congress and Samajwadi Party objected to the Indian cricket teamrsquos away jersey featuring orange colour claiming that the Modi government was attempting to saffronise the gameThe ICC later clarified that India was merely adhering to its standard home and away jersey regulations The design they explained was inspired by an old T20 jersey that surprisingly also had orange MeanwhileNew Zealand fell to Indias spin ploy as the Sharmaled side ended at the top of Champions Trophy Group A with a 44run victory in Dubai on SundayFor their final groupstage game before the semifinals India made a tactical decision to drop Harshit Rana and field four spinners The move paid off brilliantly as Indiarsquos spin attack completely dismantled New Zealandrsquos batting lineup successfully defending a 249run target With this third consecutive victory India finished the group stage with six points while New Zealand secured the second spot with four pointsDisclaimer The views expressed here are the authors personal views and do not represent the views of MidDay