Alex Hales' Fake Account Incites Twitter War Between India, Pakistan Fans

Since Twitter started charging for Twitter Blue and took away the blue ticks from confirmed handles, people have been confused about whether or not a handle is real. There are still a lot of well-known people who don't have a certified badge.

Alex Hales, who plays for England, is one of them. And right after he said he was leaving international cricket on Friday, another fake account with the same profile picture as him started a fight between cricket fans from India and Pakistan.

The fake account which goes by the handle @rixzz177 took a swipe at India by referring to England's 10-wicket victory in a pretentious retirement announcement post.

"After an amazing time on the pitch, it's time to close this part of my life. Grateful for the memories, the friends, and the love of the game. Thank you all for always being there for me! "Scoring 170-0 is still one of the best innings I've ever played," he wrote.

Hales, who doesn't use Twitter that much, said he was retiring on Instagram. The strong batsman at the top of the order played 156 times for England in Tests, one-day internationals, and Twenty20 internationals.

The 34-year-old last played for his country in November 2022, when England beat Pakistan in the final of the T20 World Cup.

Hales is an expert in playing with white balls. In 67 ODIs, he scored 2,419 runs at an average of nearly 38, and in 75 T20 internationals, he scored 2,074 runs at just under 31. But things that didn't happen on the pitch kept him from playing for England. In 2017, he got into a fight outside a Bristol bar with Ben Stokes and was fined and put on suspension.

Hales was banned again in 2019 after tested positive for a leisure drug. This meant that he couldn't play for England at the 50-over World Cup, which England won that year.

In an Instagram post, Hales said, "It has been an absolute honour to represent my country 156 times in all three formats."

"I've made some memories and friendships that will last a lifetime, and I feel like now is the right time to move on."

He also said, "During my time playing for England, I've been through some of the best and worst times of my life." It's been an amazing ride, and I'm happy that my last game for England was a World Cup final win."

Hales will keep playing for his county team, Nottinghamshire, as well as for brand teams all over the world.