The Indian cricket team will be sporting an orange and blue jersey for their World Cup 2019 match against England, the official kit sponsor confirmed on Friday. Since hosts England wear a blue jersey, India will debut their ‘away’ jersey in Birmingham on Sunday. “The ODI and Away Kit designs launched this year are inspired by the young new generation of India and the fearless spirit of the national teams,” said the sports apparel company in their official statement.
Presenting #TeamIndia's Away Jersey ?????? What do you make of this one guys? #TeamIndia #CWC19 pic.twitter.com/TXLuWhD48Q
— BCCI (@BCCI) June 28, 2019
But some politicians are smelling an ulterior agenda of pushing the saffron ideology into the arena of sports. One would deem it to be a waste of time, considering there are more pressing issues at hand: Swathes of the country are facing drought and severe water scarcity, economic indicators are a cause of concern, and the deaths of scores of children in Bihar because of encephalitis have shocked the nation.
Paranoia over saffron in a cricket match is a hit-wicket that the Opposition can ill-afford at this stage. There is no point in wasting precious political capital on what colour the Indian team is sporting for a one-off match – and then blaming the Prime Minister for it.
A Congress MLA from Maharashtra has accused the Modi government of “trying to saffronise” everything. Not to be left behind, Samajwadi Party leader Abu Azmi also chipped in, saying Modi “wants to paint the country saffron”.
The Congress party has now wisely decided to distance itself from the controversy.
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