India is a Cricket fanatic country where fans live and digest cricket as a part of their daily routine. It is very natural for the fans to be interested in knowing about the personal lives of their favourite cricketers and also about the stories that shape them. Social media provides a good platform to cricketers where they enjoy the liberty to interact and converse with their followers in an informal way.
However, as the saying goes, “there is a limit to everything”. This limit sometimes is not adhered to by the people when they go against the cricketers for voicing their opinion through social media. The situation at times, worsens even more, when privacy of these cricketers is invaded and fans go ahead to criticise and bash them for raising a reasonable and valid point.
#1 MS Dhoni was targeted for his simple tweet
The Indian skipper is always at the mercy of his critics.
MS Dhoni is one of those Indian Cricketers who has a decent number of haters despite being the most successful captain for India in the limited overs format. It is not a rare sight to see Dhoni being involved in some controversy or the other due to both on-field and off-field issues.
His haters never miss out on any opportunity to target him and he is always at the mercy of his critics.
Dhoni put this photo up on twitter asking his fans to spot the difference:
To this, one of the fans replied in an arrogant manner asking him to focus on his batting and not waste time on twitter:
In another incident, a disgruntled fan told the skipper that there are many people who hate him and he is one of them even without giving any reason for the same:
#2 Gautam Gambhir was criticised for his opinion on biopics
Gautam Gambhir recently made a comeback into the Indian test team under the captaincy of Virat Kohli. His equation with Dhoni hasn’t been smooth and it has been contended that this was the reason for his exit from the team.
The Indian opener was targeted mercilessly by Dhoni fans after he decided to voice his opinion on a national issue on twitter. The left-handed batsman expressed his point of view of making biopics on Indian soldiers who sacrifice life for the country rather than on any cricketer. His tweet came after the Uri attacks and at a point of time when M.S. Dhoni: The Untold Story (Dhoni’s Biopic) was about to release.
This didn’t go well the die-hard Dhoni fans who were quick in raising objections to the thought and criticised Gambhir for his tweets. The 35-year old, however, later clarified on his tweet which was too late to be retracted.
#3 Harbhajan Singh getting attacked for his birthday tweet
Harbhajan Singh is regarded as one of India’s finest spinners who has the ability to demolish any batting line-up easily. He has been out of the team for a while now and is trying hard to make a comeback. He, however, is very active on the social media in interacting with his fans and connecting with fellow cricketers.
He recently wished the current Indian test team wicket keeper Wridhiman Saha on his birthday and remarked him as the best wicket keeper in the world.
He was obviously voicing his personal opinion and choice through his message. But this did not go well with the cricket fans, especially followers of Dhoni, who believed that the 36-year-old was being insensitive and disrespectful to Dhoni who, they believe, is the best wicket keeper in the world.
#4 When Ravichandran Ashwin failed to acknowledge the captain cool
Ravichandran Ashwin has had a terrific 2016 where he not only troubled the opposition with his fiery bowling but was also energetic with the bat. He was awarded the prestigious ICC cricketer of the year and ICC Test Cricketer of the year recently for his stupendous performances over the course of last one year.
While accepting the award, the 30-year-old acknowledged the contribution of all important people including his parents, captain Virat Kohli and coach Anil Kumble for his success. But to the surprise of many, he missed out on Dhoni’s name and only made a passing reference to him.
This, as Dhoni's fans felt, was cruel of Ashwin as his career was flourished after support from Dhoni and he deserved appreciation for that.
#5 When Mohammed Shami put up a photo with his wife
Mohammed Shami recently got involved in a very unexpected and unpleasant off-the-field controversy. He put up a photo of his family on the social media site Facebook where he can be seen along with his wife who is wearing a sleeveless dress.
This, however, was not well received and Muslim fanatics claimed the photo to be ‘anti-Islamic’ and criticised them on social media. Several of his fans also asked Shami in their comments to be respectful of Islamic traditions and protocols and should be careful about what his wife wears.
The 26-year-old did not appreciate the response and came back with a stern reply to his critics and asked them to mind their own business and not interfere in his personal life.
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