Please don’t politicise it, says Sana Mir after controversial ‘Azad Kashmir’ remark

NEW DELHI: Former Pakistan captain Sana Mir defended her controversial “Azad Kashmir” remark during the ongoing Women’s World Cup, saying it was only aimed at highlighting “the challenges” faced by batter Natalia Pervaiz during her journey from the disputed region to international cricket.The remark was not received well by Indian fans, who pointed out that the correct term is Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir (PoK), and accused Sana of making a political remark on live TV.

“My comment about a Pakistan player’s hometown was only meant to highlight the challenges she faced of coming from a certain region in Pakistan and her incredible journey. It is part of the story telling we do as commentators as where the players come from,” Sana said in a statement on ‘X’, following the backlash.However, on her part, Sana said her remark was blown out of proportion, and she posted a screenshot of the research source she used, which she noted had since been updated.

“It’s unfortunate how things are being blown out of proportion and people in sports are being subjected to unnecessary pressure. It is sad that this requires an explanation at public level.”

She added, “I am also attaching the screen shot of where I research most of my players from, whether from Pakistan or any other country. I realise that they have changed it by now, but this is what I was referring to.”

While doing commentary in the Pakistan-Bangladesh match on Thursday, she said that Pervaiz comes from “Azad Kashmir” while describing her background.