Pakistan's Babar Azam calls Azam Khan 'Genda' during T20 World Cup practice session - What does the nickname mean?

In a short clip that has gone viral on social media, Babar Azam is alleged to have supposedly called Azam Khan, a "Genda", which led to many fans criticizing the Pakistan captain for body shaming his teammate. 

The Pakistan team were engaged in a practice session ahead of their T20 World Cup 2024 match against co-hosts United States of America (USA) at the Grand Prairie Stadium, Dallas on June 6.

Azam Khan, who has been at the end of several adverse reactions from fans due to his poor performances in the recent T20I series against England, has now found himself in the spotlight once again.

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What is the meaning of the nickname "Genda" used by Babar Azam for Azam Khan?

The word "Genda" translates in English to a Rhinoceros. In the context of Pakistan captain Babar Azam calling Azam Khan a "Genda", it can be considered a slur, used to body shame his teammate.

Azam Khan has faced criticisms in the past from former cricketers including Shahid Afridi, who questioned the cricketer's selection in the Pakistan team and even suggested that he should not come anywhere close to the team due to his poor fitness standards. To make it worse, the 25-year-old wicketkeeper has also been under the scanner recently due to his poor performances with the bat, both internationally and in the domestic competitions.

Khan has recorded a score over 30 just 3 times in 25 innings across all T20 matches that he has played in 2024, including T20Is for Pakistan, the PSL and ILT20.

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What happened after the video of Babar Azam's 'Genda' remark to Azam Khan went viral?

Many fans criticized Babar for fat shaming and putting down his teammate ahead of a major tournament like the T20 World Cup 2024.

This is disgusting, below the belt and outright shambolic. Babar Azam saying that "ay gainda nai siddha hoya" to Azam Khan in practice is an exhibit of everything which is wrong with our society and our team both. As captain you can't be using such words.https://t.co/h5G0sJHJ37

— Abdullah (@abdullahhammad4) June 3, 2024

There were also others set of fans who defended Babar by claiming that it was either a light-hearted joke among teammates or that he was misinterpreted. However, neither player has reacted to the clip so far.

So far, the Pakistan captain has been quite supportive of Azam Khan despite the latter being under huge pressure from both fans and pundits alike. Here's a video of Babar consoling Khan after the loss in the 4th T20I against England before the World Cup:

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I'm so glad to see this video that "Babar" is backs "Azam Khan" after yesterday performance. 🥺🥰

This is the quality of a pure leader 🙏🔥 #BabarAzam | #ENGvPAK pic.twitter.com/5qWWLgrH7Q

— Sami Ullah (@Sami_ullah_1234) May 31, 2024