India off-spinner Parvez Rasool has come down heavily on all the social media trolls and criticism after he was dragged into a controversy during his T20I debut against England last month. The 27-year-old faced the flak of the fans on social media after he was spotted chewing a gum when the national anthem of India was being played before the game.

Finally reacting to the controversy, the Jammu and Kashmir ace urged the critics to let the cricketers play the game instead of dragging them into politics.

“Let cricketers play cricket and don’t involve them into politics unnecessarily. I try to keep my focus on the game and don’t let these controversies affect me,” said Rasool in an exclusive interview to ETV.

“It is already very difficult for cricketers from our region to make it into the national team and when these things happen, it is very disheartening. One has to remain tough and should not give importance to such controversies,” added the player who is one of the handful of players from his state to make it big in the game.

Meanwhile, the former Royal Challengers Bangalore tweaker said he was not sad after failing to get a suitor for the upcoming edition of the Indian Premier League.

“It is just part and parcel of the game and I am not sad that I wasn’t picked up in the IPL auction. I was amongst the top all-rounders in this year’s Ranji Trophy and would like to keep performing whenever I get a chance to play,” Rasool concluded.