‘If you want only slim guys, then you should go to modelling competition’: Sunil Gavaskar backs Rohit Sharma after Shama Mohamed’s comments | Cricket News
After Congress spokesperson Shama Mohamed’s comments on India skipper Rohit Sharma kicking up a storm of controversy on Monday, Sunil Gavaskar said mental strength matters in cricket and not physical size. Mohamed had called Rohit “fat for a sportsman” and described him as “the most unimpressive Captain India has ever had” on X before she was forced to delete the post due to backlash.
“I have always said, if you want only slim guys, then you should go to a modelling competition and pick all the models. It’s not about that,” Gavaskar told India Today.
“It’s about how well you can play cricket. We talked about Sarfaraz Khan, he was vilified for a long time because he was on the heavier side. But if he scores 150 for India in a Test match and follows it up with another two or three fifty-plus scores, then what’s the issue? I don’t think size has anything to do with it. It’s your mental strength —whether you can last the distance—that’s the most important thing. Bat well, bat for long, and score runs,” he added.
Uninon sports minister Mansukh Mandaviya had also slammed these comments on Rohit’s physique and fitness on Monday.
“Congress and TMC should leave sportspersons alone as they are fully capable of handling their professional lives. Remarks made by leaders from these parties, indulging in body shaming and questioning an athlete’s place in the team, are not only deeply shameful but also outright pathetic,” the minister had posted on X.
“Such comments undermine the hard work and sacrifices that our sportspersons make to represent the country on the global stage,” he had added.
