Sunil Gavaskar targets Lionel Messi, holds him responsible for Kolkata GOAT tour mishap
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Former Indian captain Sunil Gavaskar did something out of the box on another occasion. Gavaskar criticized the Argentina World Cup winner, Lionel Messi, for not keeping up with his commitments and has held him responsible for the mishap, while defending the organisers.
Lionel Messi arrived in India for the GOAT tour. He was supposed to start his tour from Kolkata on the day of his arrival, which is the 13th of December, and then move to Hyderabad on the same day. The next two days were marked for his visit to Mumbai's Wankhede Stadium and New Delhi's Arun Jaitley Stadium.
As planned, the tour was a massive success, as Messi visited all these places and got immense love from his fans and football fanatics. However, the Argentina star's start to the GOAT tour was not on a pleasant note in Kolkata's Salt Lake Stadium.
Lionel Messi's GOAT India tour started on a disappointing note in Kolkata
Kolkata is often called the heart of Indian football or the 'Mecca of football' in India. Lionel Messi's visit was the most anticipated event of this decade in the City of Joy, as more than 50000 football fanatics gathered to catch a glimpse of the footballing icon.
During the Argentine legend's visit to Kolkata's Yuva Bharati Stadium (Salt Lake Stadium), alongside his Inter Miami teammates, Luis Suarez and Rodrigo De Paul, they were billed for a two-hour event at the venue. However, during the event, the public went berserk over the politicians and celebrities crowding around Messi, leaving thousands of ticket-paying fans without a glimpse of their favourite footballer.
The public grew outraged and threw water bottles into the stadium. Messi was then abruptly made to leave the venue, which further instigated the crowd, and they broke in and vandalized the entire stadium.
“Everyone was blamed except the person who failed to honour his commitment," Sunil Gavaskar wrote
Following the unforeseen events in Kolkata, former Indian cricketer Sunil Gavaskar has blamed Lionel Messi for the mishap instead of putting the blame on the organizers for poor management and planning.
Writing to Sportstar, the former Indian batter claimed that had Messi agreed to stay for a set time, then he should not have left early, disappointing the fans. He also claimed it was his and his entourage's responsibility.
“Everyone was blamed except the person who failed to honour his commitment," Sunil Gavaskar wrote.
“What the agreement was isn’t public, but if he was meant to be there for an hour and left well before that, then the real culprit was he and his entourage," he added.
"There was no security threat to him or his entourage" - Sunil Gavaskar
Sunil Gavaskar was also not ready to accept the fact that there were any security concerns, and Messi never faced any kind of threat, especially from the public who spent thousands to catch a glimpse of him. He further stated that Messi could have done something like taking a round of the ground or taking a penalty shot.
“Yes, he was surrounded by politicians and so-called VIPs, but there was no security threat to him or his entourage," he wrote.
“Was he supposed to simply walk around the stadium, or do something tangible like take a penalty kick? If it were the latter, those around him would automatically have had to move, and the crowd would have seen their hero do what they had come to watch."
Sunil Gavaskar also believes that the organizers were not to be blamed since the Messi tour went fine in the other three cities where it was planned because commitments made by the Argentine were kept.
“The other appearances went smoothly because commitments were met," Gavaskar added.
“So before blaming fellow Indians in Kolkata, it’s worth checking whether promises on both sides were actually kept," he concluded.
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