Another day, another poor behaviour from Indian fans has come to light. Bangladesh’s super fan Shoaib Ali Bukhari, also known as Tiger Shoaib, was harassed during IND vs BAN Cricket World Cup clash in Pune on Thursday. Video footage emerged showing some Indian fans tearing the tiger mascot apart after Bangladesh lost to India. This is not the first time though. Indian fans stole the limelight after Pakistan’s Mohammad Rizwan was heckled during IND vs PAK game in Ahmedabad. Pakistan Cricket Board even launched a complaint with the ICC for poor crowd behaviour.
Although Bangladesh have not lodged a complaint with the ICC over the issue, Indian cricket fans are sure to face criticism for their behaviour. In a country, where “Atithi Devo Bhava” is the motto, such incidents put India in a bad light on the world stage.
Who is Tiger Shoaib?
Like Sudhir Kumar Chaudhary who never missed an Indian cricket match, Shoaib Ali or Tiger Shoaib is one such super fan. Tiger Shoaib paints his body in tiger colours. He also carries a toy Tiger on his head as the mascot of Bangladesh cricket. He has been watching cricket in India and abroad for a long time and does not miss a Bangladesh cricket match.
While Tiger Shoaib has been visiting India for a long time, this time, he faced something unexpected.
Before the Bangladesh game, he met with Indian captain Rohit Sharma and heaped praise on him. When Rohit saw him, he rolled down his car window and said, “Arey tu yaha agaya (Hey, you have come here as well!).”
“I was waiting along with some other Bangladeshi fans outside the main gate of the stadium as the team was training inside the ground. Suddenly I spotted a blue car with Rohit Sharma in the driving seat. I shouted his name. The next moment, Rohit stopped his car and spoke to me. This is why he is a big player, he is a very down-to-earth person,” Shoaib Ali Bukhari was quoted by the Daily Star.
No rule against crowd trouble
However, like the India vs Pakistan match, there won’t be any action against Indian fans in general. The ICC rule only identifies individuals, unlike FIFA. And if the Maharashtra Cricket Association identifies those fans who harassed Shoaib Ali Bukhari aka Tiger Shoiab, those individuals could be banned from entering the stadium.
“The ICC takes every complaint very seriously but code is about individuals. I don’t know what exactly is PCB looking at but it will be very difficult to take any tangible action. The ICC may identify individuals if there are charges of racism but if thousands of people are shouting a slogan, what can you do? No player was injured by any ‘missile’ hurled from the gallery? A partisan crowd is expected. That’s pressure of elite sport,” a veteran official who worked with both BCCI and ICC told PTI after PCB complained to ICC over crowd behaviour.
