The starkness of the moral dilemma it presents readers, viewers, and citizens with is the reason it has dominated the headlines in newspapers, social media, and television news, not its size.
Source: Hindustan Times
On one side, three well-known medal winners are speaking out against the alleged sexual harassment that the president of the Indian Wrestling Federation, Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, has inflicted on female wrestlers.Seven ladies, one of whom is a young girl, have protested about this in writing.
Despite this, only a small number of athletes have supported the wrestlers. The first was Neeraj Chopra, who used the javelin to win an Olympic gold. He set the bar extremely high, and as a result, Sania Mirza (tennis), Virender Sehwag, Kapil Dev, Navjot Sidhu, Harbhajan Singh, Irfan Pathan (cricket), Ravi Kumar Dahiya (wrestling), Nikhat Zareen (boxing), Rani Rampal, and Pargat Singh (hockey) have all openly demanded justice for the protesting ladies. Sidhu and Harbhajan Singh are members of political organisations that are in opposition. Up till now, neither active cricket players nor coaches nor franchise owners have backed the wrestlers’ cause.
India’s cricketers were criticised by Vinesh Phogat, the dharna’s most persuasive spokeswoman, for their silence. Why hasn’t any active cricketer shown support given cricket’s overwhelming domination as a sport in India and how highly cricketers are regarded? Why couldn’t they merely issue a statement calling for impartiality and justice?
One argument is that team sports make each player liable to a club or franchise, which discourages activity that can be viewed as going against the grain of the dominant consensus. The aversion of National Football League owners to any type of protest that can be perceived as unpatriotic or offensive by American football’s predominately white fan base ultimately put an end to Colin Kaepernick’s career.
The English Premier League, with its working-class roots, might still produce Marcus Rashford, who is willing to challenge the current administration for the sake of a cause, but the IPL is more comparable to the NFL than the Premier League given its franchise origins.
Indian cricketers automatically submit to authority, which has something to do with its shameful past. Provincial businessmen like P.M. Rungta and N. Srinivasan used to administer state cricket. They found players sinecures at their enterprises and elsewhere so they could support themselves because the game itself couldn’t at the time. The players were their customers, and they were patrons of cricket.
Source: The Lallantop
Sachin Tendulkar was mentioned by Vinesh Phogat. Why is the God of Cricket silent, she questioned? Tendulkar has previously addressed the public. In 2021, Greta Thunberg and Rihanna tweeted their support for the farmers’ demonstrations, and Tendulkar responded with the tweet: u201cIndiau2019s sovereignty cannot be compromised. External forces can be spectators but not participants. Indians know India and should decide for India. Letu2019s remain united as a nation. #IndiaTogether #IndiaAgainstPropaganda.u201d
Indian cricketers are proxies, not agents, with the notable exceptions of Kapil Dev, Bishen Bedi, and Irfan Pathan. In comparison to the average franchise star, a Delhi Police constable has more authority. Without the aid of her fellow cricketers, Vinesh Phogat will have to prevail in her conflict. They pedal so hard that they don’t have time to glance beyond their golden prison, like hamsters on a wheel.
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