Former cricketer Abdul Razzaq issued an apology to Indian actress Aishwarya Rai on Tuesday. The former all-rounder clarified that it was not his intent to make the analogy he made regarding Rai while discussing Pakistan cricket.
The former all-rounder has received flak from netizens for his tasteless comment unrelated to the discussion being held at an event where he was a guest speaker earlier this week.
Razzaq, while responding to a question about the team management’s impact on player development, used an inappropriate analogy involving the former Miss World. However, he regretted his comment and clarified his intentions.
“If your thinking is that you marry Aishwarya Rai and expect a pious and virtuous child to be born, then that can never happen,” the cricketer had said.
However, in his apology doing the rounds on social media, he has expressed remorse for the words he uttered and clarified his intention behind the statement.
“At the press conference yesterday, there was a discussion on cricket, coaching and intention, but my tongue slipped and I took Aishwayrya jee’s name, while I was to give another example,” Razzaq said.
The cricketer said “sorry” and that he “really apologises” to the actor.
“It was not my intent. I was supposed to give another example but took her name [by mistake],” the former all-rounder reiterated.
Razzaq’s words at the press conference received immense condemnation, and rightly so, as many maintained that the cricketer’s use of an “inappropriate analogy” involving the Bollywood superstar was a low blow.
Netizens immediately slammed the former cricketer for his bad choice of words at a public event where he was accompanied by fellow veterans Shahid Afridi, Umar Gul and Saeed Ajmal, as the example he was trying to cite was unrelated to the discussion he was a part of.
After Razzaq blurted out the comment and his video began surfacing on the internet, users immediately called the cricketer out for the tasteless analogy.