Star Sports, the official television broadcaster of IPL 2024, issued a clarification following Rohit Sharma’s accusation of a privacy breach in a strongly-worded social media post. The broadcaster emphasized its respect for players’ privacy and denied recording any audio from a conversation between Rohit Sharma and his friends along the boundary line before a game at the Wankhede Stadium on May 16.
Thank you for speaking Rohit Sharma “Hitman”.
---Advertisement---SHAME ON STAR SPORTS pic.twitter.com/p3SRlc7np3
— Shashank Patel (@ShaPatel01) May 19, 2024
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Star Sports Responds To Rohit Sharma
“A clip involving a senior Indian player and his post on social media has gained prominence since yesterday. The clip, taken during a training session on May 16 at Wankhede stadium, for which Star Sports had authorized access, momentarily showed the senior player in conversation with his friends on the sidelines,” Star Sports said in a statement.
“No audio from this conversation was either recorded or broadcast. The clip, which only showed the senior player requesting for the audio of his conversation to not be recorded, got featured in Star Sports’ live coverage of pre-match preparations and lacked editorial relevance beyond this. Star Sports has always adhered to the highest standards of professional conduct while broadcasting cricket all over the world. Respect for players’ privacy while bringing fans, moments of intense action and preparations, sits at the core of this ethos, which the broadcaster remains committed to,” it added.
This statement was in response to Rohit Sharma’s concern that broadcasting private conversations between players could erode trust among “fans, cricketers, and cricket.” Rohit mentioned he had requested Star Sports not to record audio of such pre-game discussions but did not specify which conversation he was referring to.
Rohit’s on-camera antics have been a consistent feature during his tenure with both his IPL franchise, MI, and the national team. These moments are not always received positively by the India captain. A friendly pre-game chat between Rohit Sharma and KKR’s batting coach Abhishek Nayar went viral on social media, leading to speculation about his future with MI. The Knight Riders eventually deleted the video after it was widely shared.
The situation escalated when a viral video showed Rohit pleading with folded hands to the broadcasting team to refrain from recording his audio during personal conversations with other players and coaches ahead of MI’s final game of the season against LSG on May 17.
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