Pakistani cricketers Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan, and Shaheen Shah Afridi have had their Instagram accounts blocked in India. Users trying to access their handles were met with a curt message: "Account not available in India. This is because we complied with a legal request to restrict this content." The move comes days after the Pahalgam terror attack, which left 26 dead, including 25 tourists. This isn’t the first digital crackdown from India on Pakistani personalities. Actress Hania Amir’s profile was earlier blocked. Social media handles of javelin star Arshad Nadeem, and YouTube channels of former cricketers like Shahid Afridi, Shoaib Akhtar, and Basit Ali have also been restricted. Some Pakistani news channels are facing similar bans. The reasons cited range from “provocative content” to “anti-India misinformation”. Read also: KCA Suspends Sreesanth for 3 Years, Plans to Sue Samson’s Father Tea cups, jerseys, and a boiling controversy The ban on Babar Azam has also stirred debate online, especially after images emerged of him and teammates posing with tea cups following the Pahalgam tragedy. Critics called it ill-timed. This came as an aftermath of former Pakistan male team captain Shahid Afridi’s explosive blaming of India's security and downplaying of Pakistan being pointed at. Indian cricketer Shikhar Dhawan responded sharply, defending the nation’s stand. But Afridi didn’t back down. He posted a picture on X wearing military camo, holding a cup of tea, and captioned it with a sarcastic invite to Dhawan — “Come have a cup of tea, brother.” And it came with a hashtag, "Fantastic Tea." Many saw it as a direct provocation — a throwback to the 2019 incident involving Indian Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman. Held captive briefly by Pakistan, Varthaman’s calm demeanour in an interrogation video, sipping tea and saying “the tea is fantastic”, became iconic across India. The timing of Afridi’s post, during heightened tensions after the Pahalgam carnage, has led to criticism that he deliberately tried to invoke those memories. The Pahalgam attack, reportedly orchestrated by LeT commander Farooq Ahmad under Hafiz Saeed’s shadow network, has already strained ties. When sports have been repeatedly portrayed as means of brotherhood and unity, this is no doubt unexpected from cricketers at least from Babar Azam.