NEW DELHI: Indian cricketer Rohit Sharma has publicly criticized Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 broadcaster Star Sports for recording and broadcasting private conversations between players, calling it a serious violation of privacy.
Sharma expressed concern over the nature of media influence surrounding cricketers. In his article on X, he highlights the increasing intrusion of cameras into cricketers’ lives.
“Cricketers’ lives have become so boring that cameras now record our every move and conversation with our friends and colleagues, whether in training or on match days,” said Sharma X.
The 37-year-old also said that despite asking Star Sports to avoid recording their private conversations, their private relationships were kept private and aired.
“The need to only have content and only focus on ideas and engagement will one day destroy trust between fans, cricketers and cricketers. Let good sense prevail, “he said.
It may be noted that Sharma’s post comes in response to a recent incident where he had a personal conversation with Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) assistant coach Abhishek Nayar. He warned that the constant pursuit of exclusive content could erode trust between fans, cricket and the sport, and called for better thinking in media practices.
Earlier, Sharma had asked Star Sports to turn off the audio recording when the camera was shown during a casual chat with his teammates. “Brother, please turn off the sound, one sound has disturbed me,” he said in a clip recorded by Star Sports.
Concerns about Sharma’s personal life increased with Hardik Pandya’s replacement as MI captain ahead of the start of the IPL 2024 season. The decision was met with huge backlash from fans, resulting in a hostile environment for Pandya in several stadiums. The five-time IPL champions finished at the bottom of the points table with just four wins from 14 matches.
