Wikipedia restricts page of Indian cricketer who dropped catch against Pakistan amid torrent of abuse

Sikh player Arshdeep Singh accused on social media of deliberately dropping catch

India’s Arshdeep Singh dropped a catch in the closing stages of a tense India-Pakistan match at the Asia Cup in Dubai (AFP via Getty Images)

Wikipedia has restricted the page of Indian cricketer Arshdeep Singh after users vandalised his page and linked him to a Sikh separatist movement for dropping a catch against rival Pakistan in a match.

The wrongful edits on Singh’s Wikipedia page were removed “within minutes” and editing access to the article was restricted to “trusted users” to prevent further vandalism, said a spokesperson for US-based nonprofit Wikimedia Foundation, that operates the free online encyclopedia.

The 23-year-old Sikh bowler from India’s northern state of Punjab found himself facing severe, hate-filled criticism after he dropped a catch in the critical stages of a tense Asia Cup match between India-Pakistan on Sunday.