During the current Women’s World Cup, former Pakistan captain Sana Mir justified her contentious “Azad Kashmir” statement, claiming it was intended solely to draw attention to “the challenges” batter Natalia Pervaiz encountered as she made her way from the disputed territory to international cricket.
She mentioned Pervaiz’s origins in “Azad Kashmir” while providing analysis for Thursday’s Pakistan-Bangladesh game. The comment was met with disapproval by Indian supporters, who accused Sana of making a political statement on live television and pointed out that the proper phrase is Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir (PoK).
“My comment about a Pakistan player’s hometown was only meant to highlight the challenges she faced of coming from a certain region in Pakistan and her incredible journey. It is part of the story telling we do as commentators as where the players come from,” Sana said in a statement on ‘X’, following the backlash.
“I did that today for two other players coming from other regions, too. Please don’t politicise it. As a commentator on the World Feed, we are meant to focus on the sport, teams, and players, highlighting inspiring stories of grit and perseverance. There is no malice in my heart or any intention to hurt sentiments,” she added.
Her dismissal from the commentary team for “politicizing” sports broadcasts was demanded by Indian fans, who also tagged the BCCI and ICC.
Sana, on the other hand, claimed that her comment was exaggerated and shared a screenshot of the research source she had used, noting that it had subsequently been updated.
“It’s unfortunate how things are being blown out of proportion and people in sports are being subjected to unnecessary pressure. It is sad that this requires an explanation at public level.”
She added, “I am also attaching the screen shot of where I research most of my players from, whether from Pakistan or any other country. I realise that they have changed it by now, but this is what I was referring to.”
The women’s cricket World Cup is being co-hosted by India and Sri Lanka, with Pakistan hosting all of their matches in the island nation.
The controversy follows off-field tensions between the two countries during the recent men’s Asia Cup in the United Arab Emirates, where India defeated their bitter rivals in the final but was denied the trophy by Mohsin Naqvi, the chairman of the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) and the chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).
The Indian players refused to accept the trophy from him in protest of the Pahalgam terror attack earlier this year. In the Pakistani government, Naqvi serves as the interior minister as well and is known for his anti-India stance.
