The Indian cricket team, which was hailed as one of the favourites to lift the trophy, failed to start their T20 World Cup campaign with a win, suffering a humiliating 10-wicket loss in their opening group match against arch-rivals Pakistan.

𝐖𝐇𝐀𝐓. 𝐀. 𝐏𝐄𝐑𝐅𝐎𝐑𝐌𝐀𝐍𝐂𝐄 #T20WorldCup | #INDvPAK | https://t.co/74tB9RjNUH pic.twitter.com/DHagg9XqtN

— ICC (@ICC) October 24, 2021

Very rarely do we see the Indian team get dominated by any opposition in all three departments of the game but Babar Azam’s side did that in front of a packed Dubai International Stadium. Talking about batting, most of the Indian batters, barring skipper Virat Kohli and Rishabh Pant, had no answer to Pakistan’s quality bowling attack led by pacer Shaheen Afridi.

Thanks to Kohli and Pant’s partnership, India did manage to get past the 150-run mark but everyone knew it was not going to be enough, especially with dew playing a role in the second half. 

#TeamIndia move past FIFTY!

Captain @imVkohli unbeaten on 24@RishabhPant17 batting on 13#T20WorldCup #INDvPAK

Follow the match https://t.co/eNq46RHDCQ pic.twitter.com/TjBCOZAbaS

— BCCI (@BCCI) October 24, 2021

If India’s batting performance was poor, their bowling performance was even worse. India’s pace bowling trio of Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami didn’t pose any threat to the Pakistani openers throughout the innings. Looking back, they didn’t even create a half chance.

Ravindra Jadeja was a bit economical but Varun Chakravarthy started off well but by the time he finished his spell, he had leaked 33 runs. For him it must have been a harsh reality check as he would have realised why people call international cricket a different kettle of fish.

© Twitter BCCI

The point here is that it was a collective failure that led to the team's humiliating loss but only Mohammed Shami was vilified. Bowling the 18th over of the innings, Shami conceded 17 runs off five deliveries as Pakistan got over the line.

It’s not hard to guess why Shami is being targeted by the social media trolls. More than his expensive spell, he was facing the brunt for being a Muslim. Hiding behind the virtual wall of social media, these religious extremists feel that they can abuse anyone, pass comments on their religion, question their patriotism -- all this without any consequences.

It’s this safety cushion that encourages them to carry on this cowardice act -- spewing venom online and abusing a player -- against a player who has performed at the highest level for so many years.

Shami faced vicious online abuse:

© Instagram

© Instagram

The only saving grace was the fact that not everyone thinks or acts on the same line. There are some sane people who are ready to call this “atrocious” act and stand in solidarity with our star player.

Some of you make me sick. dirt mentality. abusing a cricketer who serves his nation when called upon. appreciate karlo if another team has played well. What will you teach your children when they lose a race in school, to abuse their fellow one if there’s a loss? #Shami

— Karan Jotwani (@BabaJotwani) October 24, 2021

Don't target Shami . He is also INDIAN. We loose due to poor performance of our team except #Kohli & #Pant . All other than these 2 are responsible for defeat. So, why we are blaming someone by targeting his religion. Don't spread this poison.#Shami #INDvPAK pic.twitter.com/hnCty0aFQQ

— Chaudhary Akshay Khoth (@Ch_Akshay_Khoth) October 24, 2021

Rohit, Rahul, Jadeja, SKY, Pandya all failed with the bat. Shami, Bhuvi, Bumrah, Varun failed with the ball. But the only guy who'll be blamed is the one who carried the team from 31-3 to 151. The streak had to end at some point. #indiaVsPakistan #shami pic.twitter.com/zsVzIEgcNU

— Abhishek Vaishnav (@abhishek250488) October 24, 2021

Change my mind. #shami #istandwithshami @BCCI pic.twitter.com/e68PcP9Vkq

— Vikram Gill (@Im_VGill) October 25, 2021

Black lives matter but Muhammed Shami's life doesn't ?? #Shami pic.twitter.com/zhWw1QpeK8

— payein (@LordzzOfChaos) October 25, 2021

Horrifying Islamophobic abuse being hurled at Mohammed Shami on social media after India's loss to Pakistan. The Indian team failed collectively, but Shami seems to be the only one bearing this cross. In complete solidarity with Shami. We are lucky that he plays for us.

— Uday Rana (@UdaySRana) October 24, 2021

Stand With Mohammed Shami. #INDvPAK#IndiaVsPak pic.twitter.com/hNcqbDGjjp

— Arjun Mehar ☭ | अर्जुन महर ☭ (@Arjun_Mehar) October 24, 2021

Stop being so harsh on mohammad shami. Everyone except Virat,Rishabh and Bumrah had a bad game. Respect the game, and move forward. We'll bounce back, for sure.#INDvPAK #MohammadShami #T20WorldCup #Casteism

— Potterwatch (@__sportsaddict7) October 25, 2021

It’s disheartening to see that after just one bad day in the office, some idiots are calling the pacer a “Pakistani”, pointing finger at his commitment to the side, accusing him of conceding runs intentionally, and favouring the opposition -- all because of his religion.

The fact that most of the players performed poorly on the night but only Shami was targeted for his performance shows how hard it is to be a muslim in India. Their patriotism is always questioned, they are always made the scapegoat for all the problems in the country.

After Pakistan’s first-ever victory against India in the World Cup in 13 attempts, Pakistan Minister Sheikh Rasheed describes Pakistan’s victory against India in the T20 WC match as a "victory of Islam."#IndiaVsPak #T20WorldCup pic.twitter.com/RvgGODiOHy

— News18 (@CNNnews18) October 25, 2021

We all felt outraged when a Pakistani minister made a controversial remark about Indian muslims and described the win as a “victory of Islam”. Hearing him dragging religion into politics made us all furious.

After Pakistan’s first-ever victory against India in the World Cup in 13 attempts, Pakistan Minister Sheikh Rasheed describes Pakistan’s victory against India in the T20 WC match as a "victory of Islam."#IndiaVsPak #T20WorldCup pic.twitter.com/RvgGODiOHy

— News18 (@CNNnews18) October 25, 2021

But the question is are we any different? There are some people amidst us who are doing the same thing -- targeting a player because of the religion that he practises.

The sad reality is our society is no different. It’s full of religious extremists who leave no opportunity to fulfill their political agenda by spewing hatred against the country's minorities.

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