Shreyas Iyer’s Sister Faces Online Abuse, Reacts Strongly on Instagram

Following Punjab Kings’ defeat to Royal Challengers Bangalore on April 20 in the Indian Premier League (IPL), several social media users targeted Shresta Iyer, the sister of Team India cricketer Shreyas Iyer, with online trolling. Shresta Iyer expressed her strong discontent over the incident via Instagram, stating that blaming a family for merely showing support to a team is deeply unfair.

In the IPL match held on April 20, Punjab Kings lost to Royal Challengers Bangalore. Just a few days earlier, Punjab had defeated the same team, but succumbed to pressure in this match and ended up losing. After the defeat, some fans criticized the family members of Shreyas Iyer, prompting a sharp reaction from his sister.

“It is truly disappointing that some people have stooped to the level of blaming a family just for supporting their team,” Shresta Iyer wrote in her Instagram story. She added, “Whether we are on the ground or supporting from afar, our backing for the team remains unwavering. The narrow-mindedness of those pointing fingers at me is not only laughable, but also shameful. I have attended many matches—most of which ended in victory—but it seems those who hide behind screens to troll are not interested in facts.”

Meanwhile, a tweet from a user alleging that Shresta Iyer was abused by fans of Virat Kohli has gone viral on social media. The same tweet further claimed that other female family members of Indian cricketers—such as Shubman Gill’s sister, Rohit Sharma’s daughter, and KL Rahul’s wife—had also faced similar abuse in the past, and now it was Shresta Iyer’s turn. However, there is no official confirmation regarding these allegations.