Criticised for chewing gum during India's national anthem, Parvez Rasool hits back

Mumbai: Parvez Rasool, who was criticised for chewing gum during the national anthem as India took on England in the first of three Twenty20 games, finally spoke about the incident and termed the whole issue “disheartening”.

The Jammu and Kashmir all-rounder, who played his first international game, an ODI, in 2014, made his Twenty20 debut in Kanpur earlier this year as Virat Kohli-led Indian side took on Eoin Morgan’s England side.

However, as soon as he set foot on the field, he came under scrutiny after the footage of him chewing a gum during the Indian national anthem, went viral.

Subsequently, he was targeted on social media for this.

Rasool, who kept quiet since the incident occurred, finally opened up about the issue.

“Let cricketers play cricket and don’t involve them into politics unnecessarily. I try to keep my focus on the game and don’t let these controversies affect me. It is already very difficult for cricketers from our region to make it into the national team and when these things happen it is very disheartening. One has to remain tough and should not give importance to such controversies,” said Rasool to ETV.

Rasool, who did not impress much in the first T20 against England, was not picked in the playing XI for the next two games.