‘Why didn’t Sanju take T20 World Cup trophy to church, why didn't Siraj take it to mosque?'; Gambhir responds 

NEW DELHI: A controversy has erupted after members of the Indian team, including the captain and coach, visited a temple with the T20 World Cup trophy. The move was strongly criticised by Trinamool Congress MP and former cricketer Kirti Azad.

In a social media post, Azad criticised coach Gautam Gambhir and ICC Chairman Jay Shah for taking the trophy to the Hanuman Temple in Ahmedabad. He said that taking the trophy only to a temple was discriminatory and questioned why it was not taken to other places of worship. Azad also pointed out that Mohammed Siraj never took the trophy to a mosque, and Sanju Samson, who played a key role in India's World Cup triumph, never took it to a church. He said that the World Cup trophy belongs to 1.4 billion Indians of every faith, and not to any one particular faith.

Responding to the criticism, coach Gautam Gambhir said such remarks undermine the team and the players. He said the comments do not even deserve a response.

“This question does not even deserve an answer. This is a proud moment for the country. We should be celebrating the World Cup winners. Some statements only reduce the value of this achievement. If people start making such remarks, it will be unfair to the 15 players who worked hard for this victory,” Gambhir said in an interview.

He also asked critics to think about the pressure the players faced after losing the match against South Africa earlier in the tournament.

“When you make such statements today, you are actually belittling your own team and players. That should not happen. The focus should be on India winning its third T20 World Cup title, not on how the team celebrates it,” Gambhir added.

Earlier, Indian cricketer Ishan Kishan had also reacted angrily to questions about the issue. When journalists asked him about the controversy at the Jay Prakash Narayan International Airport in Patna, he said: “We won the World Cup in such a wonderful way. Ask good questions about that. Don’t ask unnecessary questions.”