Pakistan media ran ‘fake Babar Azam story’ to defame India's T20 World Cup winner: ‘Photoshopped my face…’

Irfan Pathan opens up on how the Pakistani media tried to defame him using a story involving Babar Azam.

No one really knows what's true and what's fake on social media. The era of provocative statements is upon us, and time and time again, one has seen outlandish comments being attached to sportspersons of repute on X (formerly Twitter). And more often than not, they are fake. Former India all-rounder Irfan Pathan has opened up on one such incident, revealing how there was a time when the Pakistani media tried to defame him using the name of Babar Azam.

Babar Azam in action. (AFP)

India's 2007 T20 World Cup winner stated that Pakistani media had once published a false report linking him to Babar. He then also explained how he has generally chosen not to react to every claim made about him.

According to the former cricketer, constantly responding to rumours would leave little room for an individual to simply get on with life. Pathan suggested that reacting to every piece of misinformation can become an endless exercise, particularly for public figures who are frequently the subject of speculation.

It's also important to mention that Pathan is often targeted by Pakistani fans on social media whenever there's a fixture between the two neighbouring countries. Back in the day, Pathan was also involved in a war of words with former Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi.

“The trolling and fake attribution happen every day. The media in our neighbouring country once ran a story claiming that I had gone to interview Babar Azam, and that he refused because, according to him, ‘He trolls our country, so I won’t give him an interview.’ It was a complete lie. Someone had photoshopped my face onto a picture,” Pathan said on JioHotstar’s ‘Cheeky Singles’ programme.

“The person in the original image was a young Bangladeshi reporter who had gone to the ground for the first time and was refused an interview. They literally put my face on his body and spread the story. It got over a million views, and people believed it was me. This happens every day, but I don’t respond. Every day, some lie is told in our name or about some player. If you keep responding to everyone, you won’t be able to live your life,” he added.

Pathan's playing career

He enjoyed a decade-long international career in which he established himself as one of India's leading pace-bowling all-rounders. Between 2003 and 2012, Pathan batted in 141 innings, accumulating 2,821 runs at an average of 26.12. His batting record included one century and 11 half-centuries, with his highest score being 102.

It was with the ball, however, that Pathan made his biggest impact. He finished his international career with 301 wickets at an average of 29.85, including nine five-wicket hauls and two instances of taking 10 wickets in a match.

Pathan also enjoyed an extensive career in the Indian Premier League, representing several franchises during the tournament's early years. He turned out for Punjab Kings, Delhi Capitals, Rising Pune Supergiant and Gujarat Lions. He was also picked by CSK in 2015 but did not play a single game for the franchise.