Last night, RCB captain Virat Kohli made blunders not typical of him. He dropped two very crucial catches, one of which cost his side 26 runs in a single over.
That was ought to become a topic of discussion and to be fair, it should. However, the narrative soon shifted from his performance to Anushka Sharma’s role in his on-field failures because of a statement made by Sunil Gavaskar while Virat was batting.
Because that is what happens in our society.
Virat Kohli dropped 2 catches tonight
— Pritam Singh Bhandari (@pcmwaala) September 24, 2020
Meanwhile Anushka Sharma:-#No_offence #KLRahul #ViratKohli #KXIPvsRCB pic.twitter.com/PmWIPraADI
Anushka started getting trolled and was subjected to sexist comments from viewers, who were joined in this disgusting affair by the legend of the game, Sunil Gavaskar.
Commentating during the match, Gavaskar used these words for Virat Kohli.
Inhone lockdown mein toh bas Anushka ki gendon ki practice ki hai.
This one line divided Twitter. Some people said that the statement was made in context of a viral video where Anushka and Virat could be seen playing cricket on their terrace. While others, thankfully, supported Anushka through this ordeal and criticised Gavaskar for his remark, which unnecessary in any scenario.
Targeting Anushka for virat’s performance just shows the mentality of Indian media and people including you Sunil Gavaskar..
— Neha Pandit (@neha_pandit23) September 25, 2020
Since you are given that position you should use your comments wisely
Please behave like educated ppl#AnushkaSharma
The highlight of the entire episode, though, is the Instagram story by Anushka. Addressing Gavaskar directly, she writes:
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 for her husband’s game?
While adding:
I am sure you can have many other words and sentences in your mind to use to comment on my husband’s performance from last night or are your words only relevant if you use my name in the process?
Anushka went off at Gavaskar, yessss 😌 Like I said, it’s 2020. Move on, really. Better ways to critique his performance than bringing his partner up. pic.twitter.com/XmAjEvgCCS
— S (@_whatsinaname) September 25, 2020
She ended her note with this important question.
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 statements?
Anushka Sharma to Sunil Gavaskar:
— CNNNews18 (@CNNnews18) September 25, 2020
“I am sure over the years you have respected the private lives of every cricketer while commentating on the game. Don’t you think you should have equal amount of respect for me and us?”https://t.co/zxofT02zB4
While it is unfortunate that Anushka should have to state these things for people to understand them, we laud her courage for not accepting disrespect. You can read her entire message here.