An image has surfaced on social media platforms showing spiritual leader and philosopher Swami Vivekananda bowling in a cricket match. The image is being shared with a claim that the photo was taken in 1884 at the Eden Gardens ground in Kolkata and that Narendranath Dutta, better known as Swami Vivekananda, took seven wickets in the said match.
A Facebook user shared the image with a caption: Our most respected Swami Vivekanand ji Playing cricket Incredible image. (Original text: हमारे परम आदरणीय स्वामी विवेकानंद जी क्रिकेट खेलते हुए अविश्वसनीय छवि चित्र
The text embedded in the image reads: It was sometime in the mid-1880s. Eden Gardens was around 20 years old and hosting a match between Calcutta Cricket Club (CCC), the then occupants of the ground, and Town Club. Representing the latter, one Narendranath Datta took seven wickets. He did not pursue cricket, but went on to become a global figure known by another name: Swami Vivekananda.
Here’s the link to the above post.
FACT CHECK
NewsMobile fact-checked the viral image, and found it to be edited.
Running a Reverse Image Search, we found this image on the website of Getty Images with the caption: “Yorkshire cricketer Hedley Verity (1905-1943) in action, circa 1940. (Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty Images).”
Verity was an English Cricketer and is said to be the finest slow left-arm orthodox bowler to have played cricket. He made his first-class debut with Yorkshire in 1930 after England legend Wilfred Rhodes announced his retirement from the club.
Below is the comparison between the viral and the original image.
Therefore, it is evident that an edited image is going viral.
Swami Vivekanand’s cricket journey
According to another article in The New Indian Express, Swami Vivekananda was a member of the Town Club and an ardent participant in physical activities. The caption which is being widely shared with the viral image is an excerpt from the article.
This proves that the post in circulation is edited and misleading.
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