DUBAI: In the last few years, social media has proved to be a tool for women’s cricket. Not just from the fan engagement perspective, but the stories of the athletes have received a massive platform and there is no denying it. Just one look at the ever-increasing engagement numbers published by the International Cricket Council after every women’s tournament is proof of that.

However, there is a gloomy side of social media that has affected the fans and athletes alike, especially the queer athletes. Australia pacer Megan Schutt is one of those players.

The 31-year-old has been a proud openly queer player and had to deal with inappropriate comments about her sexuality on social media. A firm believer in her thoughts, she has never shied away from voicing her opinions, however these days, she has decided to pick and choose who to reply to. “Firstly, I don’t call them all out,” Schutt told this daily.

“The ones that I feel are just trying to poke the bear. I don’t engage with them. They’re just using a derogatory comment because they can. Sometimes I feel like it can be in an uneducated way and that’s when I’ll probably react more because I feel like if we can have a civil conversation about something or engage in a conversation and change someone’s mindset, that’s when things can change,” she added.

Schutt is not the only queer athlete at the ongoing T20 World Cup in the United Arab Emirates. England’s Natalie Sciver-Brunt and Danielle Wyatt-Hodge, New Zealand’s Lea Tahuhu, and Scotland’s Abbi Aitken-Drummond are some of the openly gay players of this edition. Most of them have faced similar harassment on social media, but Schutt has been vocal the most. “Sometimes it’s even as simple as saying what’s your problem? And then they’ll divulge and then realise that it’s not really a problem and it can lead to a decent discussion,” Schutt said .

“I feel like there’s a big education piece that’s available to people out there and that’s part of having a platform but also at the same time, people need to learn when something isn’t okay. And that’s when I’ll call them out and. The ones that float in between, I’ll let it slide obviously but now and again, some people need to be put in their place,” she added.