Hayden says his heart bleeds as India battles COVID-19 pandemic and has to fight biased media as well.
India is being slammed heavily with the second wave of the pandemic wreaking havoc with a shortage of hospital beds and oxygen becoming the focal point. India has also started the largest vaccination drive in the world, and has fully vaccinated close to 4 crore people, and has given 18 crore doses thus far.
India, which has so far put up a brave fight against the pandemic which originated in Wuhan, China, is also coping with a massive misinformation war initiated by the global media establishment.
Amidst all these, India is also receiving a lot of warmth from across the world, who have come to the country’s rescue by not only providing material resources but also extending their moral support to the country.
The latest to laud India for its battle against the pandemic was former Australia cricketer Matthew Hayden, who expressed his overwhelming support for India and slammed international media for criticizing the Indian government over its handling of the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.
"Please be scared, very scared" R Ashwin urges people to follow COVID-19 protocols
“India is in the middle of the pandemic second wave’s battering, as never seen before. As it battles the alarming spread of the virus, the world media has spared no time in lambasting a country of a whopping 1.4 billion where the sheer numbers make the implementation and success of any public scheme a challenge,” Hayden wrote in in a column for the Institute for Australia India Engagement.
Calling Tamil Nadu his ‘spiritual home’, the former Australian opener said, “I have been visiting India for over a decade now and have travelled all over the country, especially Tamil Nadu which I consider my “spiritual home”. I have always had the highest respect for the leaders and public officials who are entrusted with the task of running such a diverse and vast country”.
“Wherever I went, the people greeted me with love and affection, for which I remain in their debt. I can proudly claim that I have seen India up close over the years and that is why my heart bleeds to see it not only in agony at the moment, but also for the bad press that has been hurled at it by those who I am not sure to spend any time here to understand India, its people, and their myriad challenge,” Hayden continued.
He also opined on the biased media coverage against India.
Mathew Hayden wrote, “As a cricketer and lover of the game, I have maintained my association with the sport which has allowed me to come to India to cover the Indian Premier League (IPL). Many of my fellow countrymen have also been playing in the IPL for years. In this context, at a time when the world has been shutting doors on India and lambasting the Government, I thought of sharing my thoughts while in India, to give a perspective not available to those sitting thousands of miles away”.
His post and support and love for India was appreciated by many with noted businessman and chairman of the Mahindra Group, Anand Mahindra praising him on Twitter.