Actor Kangana Ranaut on Friday condemned the remarks by cricket commentator Sunil Gavaskar on Anushka Sharma where he dragged her into Virat Kohli's poor batting performance, but said that "only a sex starved pervert will find sexual context" to the former Indian cricketer's statement.
Gavaskar found himself in the midst of a controversy for making an unsavoury comment against Kohli and Sharma after the RCB captain's forgettable outing in the IPL match on Thursday.
Commenting on the controversy, Kanagana said in a tweet, "#Anushka remained quiet when I was threatened and called Haramkhor but today the same misogyny coming to bite her, I condemn the fact that she was dragged in to cricket by #SunilGavaskar but selective feminism is equally uncool."
In another tweet, she added, "Only a sex starved pervert will find sexual context to #SunilGavaskar’s statement which he made on national television for a woman, he should’ve not mentioned her, but Anushka is playing a cricketer in her next and there are several videos of her practising with her husband."
Earlier, Anushka slammed former Gavaskar for his "distasteful" remark about her while commenting on husband Kohli's performance.
"It's 2020 and things still don't change for me. When will I stop getting dragged into cricket and stop being used to pass sweeping statements?" the actor said in a long statement posted on her Instagram Stories.
"Aur jab lockdown tha to sirf Anushka ki bowling ki practice ki unhone. Vo dikhayi di video me. (He has only faced Anushka's bowling during the lockdown. That's what we saw in the video)," Gavaskar was heard saying, apparently referring to a viral video where Kohli was seen practising while Anushka became the bowler.
"That, Mr Gavaskar, your message is distasteful is a fact but I would love for you to explain why you thought of making such a sweeping statement on a wife accusing her for her husband's game? "I'm sure over the years you have respected the private lives of every cricketer while commenting on the game. Don't you think you should have equal amount of respect for me and us?," Sharma said.
On his part, Gavaskar has clarified that his remarks were in reference to a video clip where Kohli and Anushka were seen enjoying some tennis ball cricket in their compound.
"Firstly, I would like to say, where am I blaming her, I'm not blaming her. I am only saying that the video showed she was bowling to Virat. Virat has only played that much bowling in this lockdown period," Gavaskar told India Today.
"It is tennis ball fun game that people have to pass time during the lockdown, so that's all, so where am I blaming her for Virat's failures," Gavaskar said, rubbishing allegations of a "sexist comment".
(With PTI inputs)
