On January 13, Kerala cricketer Mohammed Azharuddeen smashed a hundred from just 37 balls against Mumbai in the ongoing Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy T20 tournament. The beat made Azharuddeen an overnight sensation, with prominent personalities such as former Indian opener Virender Sehwag and commentator Harsha Bhogle appreciating the 26-year-old’s efforts.
But even though he is indulging in glory, an apparent snapshot of a news headline saying that a Muslim boy born in Kerala Mumbai was exploding went viral. The screenshot of the news portal “The News Minute” has the picture of Azharuddeen under the heading. Netburgers spoke out, saying the headline was an example of Islamophobia.
India Today Anti Fake News War Room (AFWA) has found that the screenshot has been changed. The actual article was published by “The News Minute” with the headline “Kerala opener Azharuddeen who won the century in 37 balls wins hearts”.
Believe that the screenshot is true, a Facebook user wrote, ‘If it’s not Islamophobic, I do not know what it is. I condemn this headline .. Disgusting !! The archive version can be seen here. Many others have criticized the heading.
AFWA investigation
Using relevant keywords, we found the news article related to the screenshot. Here the caption is completely different from what can be seen in the viral screenshot. The font used on the screenshot also differs from the actual headline of “The News Minute”.
Editor-in-Chief of “The News Minute”, Dhanya Rajendran, also explained on Twitter that the screenshot is false. She wrote: ‘Extremely disappointed with people who made a fake screenshot, and even more disappointed because journalists spread it. This was our original headline. If nothing else, trust that we would not have such a headline ”.
Extremely disappointed with people who made a fake screenshot, and even more disappointed because journalists spread it. This was our original heading. If nothing else, trust us we would not have such a headline pic.twitter.com/5JHJEs3S8h
– Dhanya Rajendran (@dhanyarajendran) 16 January 2021
According to The News Minute article, Azharuddeen plays for Kerala and on January 13 he hits a century of just 37 balls against Mumbai at Wankhede Stadium. .
in 37 balls!
Sensational stuff this is from Mohammed Azharuddeen.
What a beat it was from the Kerala opener! #KERvMUM # SyedMushtaqAliT20
Follow the match https://t.co/V6H1Yp60Vs pic.twitter.com/Nrh88uOOFU
– BCCI Domestic (@BCCIdomestic) 13 January 2021
The highlights of Azharuddeen’s innings can be seen here.
ClaimAfter Kerala cricketer Azharuddeen hit a century of just 37 balls against Mumbai in the domestic T20, a news website carried the headline “Kerala-born Muslim boy blast Mumbai” as an example of Islamophobia. ClosureThe said screenshot is false. The original headline published by “The News Minute” was “Kerala opener Azharuddeen who won a century in 37 balls won hearts”.
JHOOTH BOLE KAUVA KAATE
The number of crows determines the intensity of the lie.
- 1 Crow: Half true
- 2 crows: mostly lies
- 3 crows: absolutely false
