Former Indian Cricketer Comes to the Defense of Arshad Nadeem

Former Indian cricketer, Mohammad Kaif, has backed the Indian Olympic Javelin Throw gold medalist, Neeraj Chopra, for his comments regarding Indian media’s propaganda against Pakistan’s Javelin Thrower, Arshad Nadeem. Kaif said that instead of spreading false narratives, Indian media should focus on spreading the message of unity as sports unites nations.

Former middle-order batsman thanked Chopra for calling out the Indian media on their negative sensationalism and said that rivalry on the field does not necessarily mean that they are rivals off the field, regardless of their nationalities.

Kaif took to Twitter to present his point of view on the matter:

Thanks Neeraj Chopra for calling out those who use sports to push agenda of hate. A rival on field can also be a friend, his nationality doesn't matter. One more Gold Medal for reminding the world that sports unites, it doesn't divide.

— Mohammad Kaif (@MohammadKaif) August 28, 2021

Earlier, Chopra urged the Indian media to stop their unnecessary propaganda against Arshad Nadeem and advised them not to take his comments out of context to further fuel their agenda against Pakistan. Chopra had previously stated that Arshad was using his Javelin prior to Chopra’s first throw in the competition, and these comments were twisted by the Indian media to malign Arshad.

Chopra later clarified that every athlete has access to each other’s Javelins and whatever Arshad did was nothing out of the ordinary, and he used it according to the rules and regulations of the game. Chopra said that he shares a camaraderie with Arshad and accused the Indian media of blowing the incident out of proportion.