Namaz in front of Hindus: Takes jihadi mindset of another level, Venkatesh Prasad slams Waqar Younis
Waqar Younis is being drawing widespread criticism for his unwarranted remarks while analysing Pakistan’s win over India during the ongoing ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2021 in UAE. Former India cricketers including the likes of Venkatesh Prasad and Aakash Chopra among others have slammed the fast bowling legend.
While speaking during a TV interview, Waqar said it was special to see Mohammad Rizwan offer Ramzan among Hindus during the match.
“Sabse ache baat jo Rizwan ne ki. Usne ground mein khade hoke Naamaz padhi, hinduon ke beech mein…So that was really something very, very special for me. (What I liked most is what Rizwan did. He stood in the middle of the ground and offered prayers in front of the Hindus),” Waqar was quoted as saying by Arya News.
In response, Prasad called him a ‘shameless man’. “Hinduon ke beech me khade hoke namaaz padhe, that was very very special for me” – Waqar. Takes jihadi mindset of another level to say this in a sport. What a shameless man,” tweeted Prasad.
Meanwhile, popular commentator Harsha Bhogle also was ‘disappointed’. “For a person of Waqar Younis’ stature to say that watching Rizwan offering Namaz in front of Hindus was very special to him, is one of the most disappointing things I have heard. A lot of us try hard to play such things down and talk up sport and to hear this is terrible,” Bhogle shared a lengthy thread about the controversial remarks on Twitter.
“You would think that cricketers, as ambassadors of our game, would be a little more responsible. I am sure there will be an apology on the way from Waqar. We need to unite the cricket world, not divide it by religion.”
“I really hope that a lot of genuine sports lovers in Pakistan are able to see the dangerous side to this statement and join in my disappointment. It makes it very difficult for sports lovers like us to try and tell people it is just sport, just a cricket match,” he added.
Younis apologised on Twitter on Wednesday, saying he had made the comment “in the heat of the moment” and termed it as a “genuine mistake”. Younis’ controversial remark centred around Pakistan opener Mohammad Rizwan offering namaz during the drinks break in the game against India. His words did not go down well with fans across the sub-continent.
“In the heat of the moment, I said something which I did not mean which has hurt the sentiments of many. I apologise for this, this was not intended at all, genuine mistake. Sports unites people regardless of race, colour or religion. #apologies,” Younis tweeted.
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