Babar Azam 'sexting' scandal: Parody account sends Pakistani Twitter on wild goose chase

Pakistan cricket team captain falsely accused of sending explicit messages to team-mate's girlfriend

The news of Babar Azam, Pakistan cricket team captain, allegedly sending explicit messages to a teammate's girlfriend spread like wildfire on social media. The allegation, which came from a parody Twitter account sent the international media into a frenzy.

The Pakistani skipper started trending on the micro-blogging site after the dubious Twitter handle identified as Dr Nimo Yadav (@niiravmodi) tweeted "Babar Azam sexting with gf of another Pakistan cricketer and promising her that her bf won't be out of team if she keeps sexting with him is just," along with an alleged video and picture of  Azam.

The tweet soon went viral across the globe igniting hysteria and rumours with netizens offering up their two cents without first verifying the authenticity of the tweet. Several theories were offered up with a certain quarter arguing that the pictures were of Azam’s lookalike and not him.

Apart from the fake news being spread on Pakistani Twitter, certain news outlets also jumped on the bandwagon.

Meanwhile, support started pouring in for the Pakistani cricket team captain from his fans worldwide with #IStandWithBabarAzam and #StayStrongBabarAzam trending. 

Cricket commentator Harsha Bhogle also came forward in support of Babar Azam on twitter “The urgency with which everyone latched onto the fake Babar Azam story is so disappointing for our profession. Speed might be of the essence but the truth must come first, no?”, he tweeted.

The urgency with which everyone latched onto the fake Babar Azam story is so disappointing for our profession. Speed might be of the essence but the truth must come first, no?

— Harsha Bhogle (@bhogleharsha) January 18, 2023