New Delhi: Assam cricketer Riyan Parag is unfazed by the criticism he has received from fans after a controversial on-field gesture during a domestic T20 match earlier this week.
Captaining his state in a league match against Bengal — which his team won comprehensively — Parag made a celebratory gesture to suggest that he was a cut above the rest after scoring a personal half century.
The controversy was further exacerbated by former cricketer and match commentator Ashok Malhotra calling the Assam team “second class citizens” while the game was being played.
Speaking to ThePrint, Parag said, “Right now, my focus is on my (semifinal) game tomorrow. I don’t care about such comments. I would rather focus on the game.”
Assam has for the first time booked a place in the semifinals of the BCCI-organised Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy after knocking out Kerala.
What went down
During the league match on 31 October, Ashok Malhotra — a former Bengal Ranji player and coach — said: “Humare zamane mein Assam ke team ko second-class citizens mana jata tha (During our time, the Assam cricket team was seen as a second-class citizen)”. Many saw Parag’s hand gesture as a direct response to that.
Malhotra faced his own backlash, which prompted an apology on X. He told ThePrint: “My comment was blown out of proportion. I have many Assamese friends and would never make a comment like that.”
I apologise profusely if I have hurt Assam people’s sentiments with my comments during the Assam v Bengal game last evening. I am sorry. It was totally unintentional & was trying to speak about their progress. I regret it and give an unconditional apology.
— Ashok Malhotra (@AshokMalhotra57) November 1, 2023
But the Assam Cricket Association is not taking it lightly. Its president Taranga Gogoi has written to the BCCI and says he has been assured of strict action against the former cricketer.
Parag, on the other hand, said social media criticism would not hurt him as he has “faced a lot of backlash in the past year over every action” of his.
He added that he let his bat do the talking, having emerged as the most-prolific player in this year’s tournament, scoring 490 runs in eight innings.
Additionally, he leads the table in sixes, with 39 out of the park already.
With seven back-to-back 50s in the tourney so far, Parag also holds the world record for the most consecutive half-centuries in the T20 format.