Fact Check: Did PM Modi Abruptly Exit the Stage After Handing Over the World Cup Trophy, Creating an Awkward Moment for the Australian Captain?

Yesterday, as Australia clinched their sixth Cricket World Cup title, the hearts of billions of cricket enthusiasts sank in disappointment. While a significant portion of India mourned the loss of their cricket team, some Congress supporters and leaders, joined by Pakistani social media users and journalists, were occupied with targeting Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. PM Modi, alongside Australian Deputy PM Richard Marles, graced the final World Cup match with their presence. During the closing ceremony, the Indian PM and the Australian Deputy PM jointly presented the World Cup trophy to Australian Captain Pat Cummins. However, a faction of Congress supporters and Pakistani social media users is asserting that PM Modi allegedly disrespected the Australian captain, leaving him alone and clueless on the stage.

Congress supporter Nitin wrote on X, ‘With the script going awfully wrong in the stadium named after him, Saheb had no plan B,  no grace, no face.’

X account impersonating Australian opening batsman Travis Head wrote, ‘We didn’t like this behavior at all.’

Pakistani Journalist Wajahat Kazmi wrote, ‘India proved itself to be the most disgraceful host!’

Another, Congress Supporter Sunita Jadhav tweeted, ‘Hello Mr. Prime Minister you’ve insulted Australia’s captain Pat Cummins by quickly turning your back, the world is watching BJP’s culture. First you ruined India, now because of your presence India lost the World Cup!’

In addition to these X profiles, individuals such as Venisha G Kiba, Daisy Cutter, Bole Bharat, Ravinder Kapur and Amna Aman shared the viral video with a similar assertion.

The video gained widespread attention, reaching a point where renowned English newspaper The Guardian and the online portal Wisden.com both ran stories with a similar narrative.

Also Read: Did the Indian Cricket Board Switch the Pitch to Aid Spinners? Dive into the Full Report to Uncover the Truth Behind the Controversy!

Fact Check

We watched the video of the closing ceremony for verification of the viral clip, in which we observed the playback of the final match available on Disney Hotstar. Ten hours and eight minutes after the video, precisely after the conclusion of the match, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Australia’s Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles presented the World Cup trophy to Australia’s captain Pat Cummins. The official video shows that PM Modi and Australia’s Deputy PM Marles awarded the trophy to the victorious captain, congratulating him. Following this, the Indian PM and the Australian Deputy PM descended from the stage to congratulate the rest of the Australian team players.

Additionally, we found the entire segment of the viral video on Kartik Reddy’s X profile.

Conclusion:

To conclude, the video circulated by Congress supporters and Pakistani social media users has been manipulated. In the unaltered footage, Prime Minister Modi is seen extending congratulations to Australia’s captain Pat Cummins as he presents him with the World Cup trophy. Subsequently, PM Modi descends from the stage to convey his congratulations to the other members of the Australian team.