'Panauti is worst word to use for PM' - Gautam Gambhir schools opposition for mocking PM Narendra Modi after India's WC final loss

Team India suffered a heartbreaking loss in the final of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 against Australia at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. Following the end of the game, Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited the Indian dressing room to boost the morale of the team after a rare loss in an otherwise flawless campaign.

However, Modi’s presence in the stadium and the dressing room didn’t go down well with certain politicians who began trolling him for bringing bad luck with him and even called him ‘panauti’. Former India cricketer and 2011 World Cup winner Gautam Gambhir recently came to the defence of the prime minister and said that it’s the worst word, particularly for a prime minister.

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The former India opener further compared Modi’s presence with former Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh who also attended the high-voltage India vs Pakistan semi-final during the 2011 World Cup.

“The word that was used ‘panauti’, it is probably the worst word that could’ve been used against anyone, particularly a prime minister of this country. In the 2011 Cricket World Cup semi-final, Dr Manmohan Singh was there. Had we lost that match and he had come to meet us, what would’ve been wrong in that?,” Gambhir recently said in a podcast.

PM Modi and Australian Deputy Prime Minister handed the trophy to Pat Cummins

Notably, Australia’s Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles was also in attendance to witness the final of the World Cup. Both Marles and PM Modi handed over the trophy to Australian captain Pat Cummins after his side beat the hosts to clinch their sixth World Cup title.

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Coming to the match, after being put in to bat first, India were bundled out for a below-par score of 240 as captain Cummins (2/34) bowled brilliantly and dismissed Virat Kohli (54 off 63) and Shreyas Iyer (4 off 3). In reply, Australia chased down the target in 43 overs courtesy of a scintillating hundred by Travis Head (137 off 120).