Indian cricket team captain Rohit Sharma found himself embroiled in an unnecessary debate on Monday as Congress leader Shama Mohamed fat-shamed him on social media. The politician’s remarks triggered a huge controversy, drawing reactions from both cricketing and political spectrums of the country. Rohit Sharma, who remains one of the most decorated cricketers in the modern game, was targeted by the national spokesperson of Indian National Congress, who stressed that the iconic cricketer ‘needs to lose weight’.
As the remark snow-balled into a big controversy, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) secretary Devajit Saikia called the remarks ‘unfortunate’, saying making such comments in the middle of an ICC event could have demoralising effect on the morale of a cricketer.
“Very unfortunate for a responsible person to pass such a trivial comment when the team is in the middle of such a crucial ICC tournament. It may have demoralising effect on an individual or the team. All the players are performing to their highest potential and results are visible. I hope individuals will desist from making such derogatory statements for personal publicity sake,” BCCI Secretary Devajit Saikia told NDTV in an exclusive chat.
“The team is in the middle of a crucial tournament. It may have demoralising effect on the team and players”: BCCI Secretary Devajit Saikia to NDTV on Congress leader Shama Mohamed fat-shaming Rohit Sharma
— NDTV (@ndtv) March 3, 2025
Shama had written in her now deleted post on X (formerly Twitter): “@ImRo45 is fat for a sportsman! Need to lose weight! And, of course, the most unimpressive captain India has ever had.”
The post drew a sharp reaction from the Bharatiya Janata Party, who accused her of “body shaming” the stalwart batter and took a dig at the Congress party’s electoral performance.
#WATCH | On her comment on Indian Cricket team captain Rohit Sharma, Congress leader Shama Mohammed says, “It was a generic tweet about the fitness of a sportsperson. It was not body-shaming. I always believed a sportsperson should be fit, and I felt he was a bit overweight, so I… pic.twitter.com/OBiLk84Mjh
— ANI (@ANI) March 3, 2025
At present, Rohit is with the Indian team in Dubai for the ICC Champions Trophy. The team has already qualified for the semi-finals of the event, where they will square off against Australia. Rohit’s Team India won all of the group-stage matches, making into the last 4 on the back of a 100 percent result.
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