IPL 2024: Ashwin lambasts fans for booing Pandya on MI captaincy issue

"Have you seen, for instance, Joe Root and Jos Buttler fans fight? Do you see Steven Smith fans fighting with Pat Cummins fans in Australia?" Ashwin questioned the Indian fans

Ravichandran Ashwin became the first cricketer to come out in support of Hardik Pandya, who has recently been made the captain of the Mumbai Indians franchise in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024. Ashwin lambasted all the fans, saying that it was not the right approach to show displeasure with any franchise decision. Check IPL 2024 Gujarat Titans (GT) vs Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) LIVE SCORE and MATCH UPDATES HERE

Saying that people should remember which country these players represent, Ashwin asked the fans to not take such an ugly route. "I've said it many times, this is cinema culture; that happens only here," he said. 

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Fan Wars Only Specific to India

Ashwin gave examples of players from other countries and said that there is no such thing as fan wars in England and Australia.

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"I know there are many things like marketing, branding, and positioning. I don't deny it, but have you seen these fights happen in any other country? Have you seen, for instance, Joe Root and Zak Crawley fans fight? Or do Joe Root and Jos Buttler fans fight? It's crazy. Do you see Steven Smith fans fighting with Pat Cummins fans in Australia?" asked the Indian off-spinner who represents Rajasthan Royals in the IPL.

Cricket Giants Played Under Dhoni

Exemplifying the situation of experienced players playing under juniors, Ashwin said that cricket Jambbhavans (giants) like Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly, Rahul Dravid, and Anil Kumble played under Dhoni, but no such issue of fan wars was witnessed.

"When they were under Dhoni, these players were cricket jambhavans (giants). Dhoni too played under Virat Kohli," he said.

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Sport Should Never Be Compared to Cinema

Blaming the fans for dishing out at players playing live sports and comparing them to actors who are in totally different professions, Ashwin said, "This is a real-time sport. Sport has real players with real emotions, nothing is scripted. Hero and hero-worshipping are great, but sport should never be compared to cinema."

"You are free to enjoy what you like about your favourite players or team, but not at the cost of putting another player down. This is one thing I'd love to see disappear from the face of the earth in our country," hoped the man with more than 500 Test dismissals to his credit.

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