"Distasteful": Anushka Sharma responds to Sunil Gavaskar's recent comment
On Thursday, former Indian cricketer Sunil Gavaskar joined the bandwagon, as he criticized Indian skipper Virat Kohli for his poor show in an Indian Premier League (IPL) game. However, he also involved the cricketer's actor wife, Anushka Sharma in his remark, which did not sit down well with many. Now, Anushka has slammed Gavaskar for his "distasteful" comment. Here's more on this.
Yesterday, Kohli had a bad day on the field
In yesterday's match against Kings XI Punjab, Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) captain Kohli dropped two crucial catches off rival skipper KL Rahul, who then went on to score an unbeaten century. Thereafter, Kohli himself was dismissed for just a single run from five deliveries. Commenting on the skipper's poor performance, Gavaskar made a statement about his lack of practice during lockdown, also involving Anushka.
'He only practiced against Anushka's bowling during lockdown'
"Ab jo lockdown tha toh, sirf Anushka ke bowling ki practice ki unhone, voh video dekhiye. Usse toh kuch nahi banna hai [He only practiced against Anushka's bowling during the lockdown. See the video. That won't help]," Gavaskar said from the commentary box. He apparently made a reference to a viral video of Anushka and Kohli playing cricket in their apartment during coronavirus-induced lockdown.
Mr. Gavaskar, your message is distasteful, said Anushka
Earlier today, Anushka slammed Gavaskar for his comment, calling it "distasteful." "That, Mr. Gavaskar, your message is distasteful is a fact but I would love for you to explain why you thought of making such a sweeping statement on a wife accusing her of her husband's game?" She also asked why Gavaskar could not show respect for her and Kohli's private lives.
"It's 2020, things still don't change for me"
"Are your words only relevant if you use my name in the process?," the 32-year-old actor asked the veteran cricketer. "It's 2020 and things still don't change for me. When will I stop getting dragged into cricket and stop being used to pass sweeping statement," asked Anushka, who has often been targeted by online trolls for Kohli's poor performances.
Cannot be justified: Fans also called out Gavaskar
Meanwhile, fans also seemed unimpressed with the former cricketer's choice of words for his commentary. "This is so disgusting. The way they don't forget to bring Anushka whenever he (Kohli) doesn't perform is so filthy. In whatever context he said, this statement cannot be justified," a certain user tweeted. Many even urged the BCCI to remove Gavaskar from the commentators' panel.
Anushka often called an 'unlucky charm' for Indian team
Anushka, who married Kohli in December 2017, has often been dragged into controversies involving his poor performance in the sport. She has been termed an "unlucky charm" for the Indian team time and again on occasions where she showed up and Kohli failed to play well. In 2019, a former Indian cricketer also involved Anushka while attacking the then Indian selection committee.
Netizens reminded of Anushka's earlier "I drink coffee" reply
In October 2019, after former Indian cricketer Farokh Engineer said selection committee members were busy serving tea to Anushka, she had hit back. The actor had said her silence should not be taken for her weakness, and requested to be left out of "malicious" controversies.
In 2016, Kohli had defended Anushka against trolls
Back in 2016, Kohli had stood up for then-girlfriend Anushka against trolls. "Shame on people for trolling Anushka Sharma non-stop. Have some compassion. She has always only given me positivity," the cricket star had said on Twitter at the time. The tweet also popularly became the "Golden Tweet" or the most re-tweeted tweet in India in that year.
