Former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Mehbooba Mufti tweeted that India's orange jersey is the reason behind the Men in Blue's loss against England in the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 at the Edgbaston cricket ground on June 30. She stated in the tweet that people can call her superstitious but she thinks that the change in the jersey colour is the reason behind the loss.
The tweet read, "Call me superstitious but I'd say it's the jersey that ended India's winning streak in the ICC World Cup 2019."
Call me superstitious but I'd say it's the jersey that ended India's winning streak in the #ICCWorldCup2019.
— Mehbooba Mufti (@MehboobaMufti) June 30, 2019
She again tweeted after sometime stating that her tweet was all in good humour. She expressed her grief regarding her team India tweet getting more traction than a tweet regarding a BJP leader asking Hindus to rape Muslim women.
My tweet about India's performance (all in good humour) got more traction than a BJP leader asking Hindus to gangrape Muslim women. Are such appalling statements intentionally being brushed under the rug? An innocuous tweet evokes strong reactions but why no outrage against this https://t.co/lYrjAjPCb9
— Mehbooba Mufti (@MehboobaMufti) July 1, 2019
The Men in Blue sported their away jersey for the first time in the World Cup against England. The colour of the jersey triggered controversies all over the country. It was claimed to have been 'saffronised' and was condemned by SP and Congress leaders who suspected politics behind it. They think the reason for the Indian team wearing orange is its similarity to saffron which is associated with the ruling party BJP.
Jammu and Kashmir National Conference (JKNC) party leader and former chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir, Omar Abdullah, on the other hand questioned the listless batting of Team India. He tweeted: "Would the batting be as listless if our place in the semifinals was at stake here rather than England's and Pakistan's?"
India lost to England in the much-anticipated fixture of the World Cup 2019 by 31 runs. The hosts who batted first put up a formidable total of 337 for the loss of seven wickets with Jonny Bairstow scoring a magnificent century leading the attack. The pick of the Indian bowlers was Mohammed Shami who picked up five wickets, continuing his brilliant run in the World Cup. Chasing a mammoth target of 338, India lost KL Rahul early for a duck. They played well in the middle overs with Rohit Sharma scoring yet another ton in the tournament. But the English bowlers tightened the screws at the death overs which resulted in an ordinary performance from Indian batsmen later on in the innings and Rohit's century going in vain.
India will next face Bangladesh on July 2 at the same ground and are one win away from confirming a semi-final berth.
