England cricketers stand up for Moeen Ali after ISIS comment by Taslima Nasreen
The Bangladesh-born author had said: ‘If Moeen Ali were not stuck with cricket, he would have gone to Syria to join ISIS’. She later deleted it.
England cricketers Jofra Archer, Sam Billings and Saqib Mahmood on Tuesday criticised author Taslima Nasreen for her religion-based tweet about Moeen Ali.
The Bangladesh-born author said: “If Moeen Ali were not stuck with cricket, he would have gone to Syria to join ISIS.” Nasreen initially defended her stand and said her tweet was sarcastic. But after severe backlash, she deleted the tweet.
The statement was purportedly in response to reports that Ali had asked the Chennai Super Kings, his Indian Premier League franchise, to remove the sponsor logo of an alcohol company from his team jersey. Ali is known to not sport logos of alcohol brands for his national team due to his religious beliefs.
The Chennai Super Kings later confirmed to The Indian Express that Ali did not ask for any logo removal.
Are you okay ? I don’t think you’re okay https://t.co/rmiFHhDXiO
— Jofra Archer (@JofraArcher) April 6, 2021
Please everyone report taslimas account! Disgusting!
— Sam Billings (@sambillings) April 6, 2021
This is the problem with this app. People being able to say stuff like this. Disgusting. Things need to change, please report this account! https://t.co/uveSFqbna0
— Ben Duckett (@BenDuckett1) April 6, 2021
I think you might need to check if you’re feeling ok !!! Maybe delete your account too.
— Ryan Sidebottom 💙 (@RyanSidebottom) April 6, 2021
Sarcastic ? No one is laughing , not even yourself , the least you can do is delete the tweet https://t.co/Dl7lWdvSd4
— Jofra Archer (@JofraArcher) April 6, 2021
Oh my! I was your fan!Why so much intolerance? U don't believe in free speech of those ppl whom u hate?Becoz u don't like my tweet, I'm no writer, no rationalist,no feminist?My struggle for 40yrs gone! Before issuing such a hateful fatwa,u could hv asked me why said tht abt Ali. https://t.co/25yVz0jm2I
— taslima nasreen (@taslimanasreen) April 6, 2021
The swift response by Ali’s colleagues to Nasreen’s communal comment was amplified by many Twitter users in India, who also praised the English cricketers for taking a stand.
Many of them compared the situation to the one in Indian cricket earlier this year. In February, former India cricketer Wasim Jaffer resigned from the position of head coach of the Uttarakhand cricket team after a dispute with the state association. Jaffer tendered his resignation following allegations that he tried to force religion-based selections in the Uttarakhand team, which he has denied.
Only a few former Indian players came out to support him.
Read more here:
Wasim Jaffer, Uttarakhand Cricket Association and allegations of communal bias
English cricketers came in support of Moeen Ali when a shameless bigot attacked him because they live in a relatively civilised society.
— Siddharth (@DearthOfSid) April 6, 2021
Indian cricketers kept mum when Wasim Jaffer was attacked because we live in an uncivilized society under a fascist regime.
Moeen Ali was subject to an islamophobic attack and his teammates immediately rallied behind him, calling out the bigot. Contrast this with India, where Muslim actors, sportspersons, celebrities of all fields face vilest attacks routinely and their lifelong colleagues stay mum. pic.twitter.com/10On9KdiVC
— Fatima Khan (@khanthefatima) April 6, 2021
Felt proud of English cricketers that they stood up for their mate #MoeenAli against the remarks made by Islamophobic #taslimanasreen
— क्लासिक Mojito (@classic_mojito) April 7, 2021
Why did Indian cricketers lack spine to stand up for #Wasimjaffer ?? pic.twitter.com/ECCA6M8jtN
Today’s disgusting tweet on the cricketer Moeen Ali by @taslimanasreen is par for the course for this person. Also, as expected, not a single CSK cricketer has seen fit to say anything while several English teammates have rallied splendidly behind him
— Ajay Kamath (@ajay43) April 6, 2021
Munir Ali, Moeen Ali’s father, said he was “hurt and shocked” to read Nasreen’s “vile remark”.
“I would ask her to pick a dictionary and see the meaning of sarcasm,” Munir Ali told The Indian Express. “It’s not what she thinks it is. It’s not spewing vile poisonous stuff against someone you don’t even know and then retracting it by saying it was sarcasm. Of all the people to pick on for her agenda, I can’t believe she has chosen my son. Everyone in the cricketing world knows the person he is.”