PSL 2020 ground host Ahmed Godil heartbroken after Twitter trolling, doxxing

KARACHI: The ground host of  the Pakistan Super League (PSL) 2020, Ahmed Godil, was heartbroken after being  bullied, demeaned, and doxxed on the Internet, and told trolls to leave his family out of the abuse.

Godil became a target for memes as people took to social media to poke fun of him after he hosted the PSL 2020 opening ceremony. "What were you [critics] expecting me to do?" he asked, during an appearance on private TV channel's morning show on Friday.

Speaking out against the hurt and ridicule he encountered after hosting the live ceremony, he said: "Did you want me to tear off my clothes and start dancing? Were you expecting me to dance? Or sing?

"Entertain you like a stand-up comedian? I am a ground host; I was doing my job," he added.

Godil said Fakhr-e-Alam was the PSL 2020 opening ceremony's real host. He said he was not even aware that he would go live as his job was only to energise the crowd from 6:45-7PM before the performances began.

The host said someone had doxxed him as well and leaked his number online, which led people to call him from all around the country and hurl abuses at him. "Fine if you have a problem with me, but at least leave my family out of it," he said. "What did they ever do to you?"

The PSL ground host said people did not realise how difficult it is to host an event as huge as the cricketing league and the amount of pressure on an individual when he has to face a massive audience live.

"Whatever you have rehearsed or remembered for the show, you forget it there [live during the ceremony]," he said, appealing to people not to ridicule his hard work as he was an artist and it took him several years to get to where he is today.

Godil said his mother did not sleep the entire night as his memes started going viral on social media. He said that when people made fun of others they did not realise the amount of hurt they inflict on the target of their humour by simply sharing a meme.

The PSL host had earlier responded to all the criticism and mocking on social media by telling people to work hard and not envy him. In a couple of Instagram posts, he had addressed the controversy that had generated during the opening ceremony of the tournament.