‘Glad To Be Trolled’: Tharoor Eats Humble Pie After India Bounce Back Against Zimbabwe, BJP Demands Apology

Congress MP Shashi Tharoor said he was ‘glad to be trolled’ on Sunday after a blazing hundred by Abhishek Sharma and bowlers’ fine effort led India to a fluent 100-run victory over Zimbabwe in the second T20I in Zimbabwe’s capital Harare.

Tharoor’s social media post after an inexperienced yet spirited Zimbabwe defeated an Indian team brimming with an array of next-generation stars by 13 runs in the first T20I of the five-match series here on Saturday led to a heated debate online between Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

“Congratulations to the young India team that just thrashed Zimbabwe today by 100 runs, especially @IamAbhiSharma4 whose century was the third-fastest ever scored for India in T20Is. Happy they bounced back so quickly from their poor showing yesterday (and glad to be trolled for a happy cause)!” Tharoor said.

However, BJP spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla aka Shehzad Jai Hind, quickly pounced on the Thiruvananthapuram Congress Lok Sabha MP and demanded an apology, accusing him of celebrating Indian cricket team’s loss against Zimbabwe in the tournament opener.

Shehzad Poonawalla accused the lawmaker and his party of being anti-India for his previous tweet.

“Will Shashi Tharoor & Congress apologise to Team India? One day after Congress, Shashi Tharoor & their ecosystem, in their hatred for Modi & BJP, subjected the Indian Cricket Team to their hatred & negativity, our boys strike back- register a huge win against Zimbabwe.. the question remains: Why was Congress celebrating India’s defeat yesterday?” the BJP spokesperson said in a statement posted on social media site X.

“Why do they keep undermining Bharat’s Sena, Sanstha & even Sports only because they hate Modi? Congress is anti Bharat,” he said.

Shehzad Poonawalla earlier accused Shashi Tharoor of celebrating India’s loss against Zimbabwe in the tournament opener. His response came after Tharoor wrote a social media post where he called the nation’s cricket governing body, Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), ‘arrogant’.

“So even while the echoes of the wild celebrations at Mumbai for India’s #T20WorldCup win has not died down, we have been beaten by minnows Zimbabwe today in Harare. It’s just what @BCCI deserved for taking things for granted. Whether on June 4 or on July 6, arrogance has been brought down a notch. Well played, Zimbabwe!” Tharoor had said earlier.

To this, Poonawalla responded by saying: “Our main team did not play today – we lost…But look at Congress celebrating India’s defeat in their hatred for BJP & Modi. Disgusting.”