India and Pakistan are two cricketing powerhouses in Asia, but their political tensions have significantly affected the game. Since 2013, there have been no bilateral series between the two nations. While Pakistan has expressed willingness to play, India has consistently refused. Despite this, millions of fans eagerly await any match between these two sides.
India avoids playing against Pakistan outside of International Cricket Council (ICC) and Asian Cricket Council (ACC) tournaments. In fact, if it were possible, India would even boycott Pakistan in those tournaments as well.
However, Indian cricket legend Sourav Ganguly believes this approach is not right. Speaking to news agency ANI, he said, “Let sports continue. What happened in Pahalgam was wrong and should not happen again. But that doesn’t mean sports should stop. In the past too, India has taken a firm stance against terrorism, but sports should go on alongside.”
The Asia Cup is set to begin on September 9 in the United Arab Emirates, and India and Pakistan are in the same group. The two teams could face each other up to three times during the tournament.
Trinamool Congress’ All India General Secretary Abhishek Banerjee, however, is unhappy with the Indian Cricket Board’s decision to play against Pakistan. On Monday, in a post on his X (formerly Twitter) handle, he wrote: “India should not maintain any relations with Pakistan—under any circumstances. The only relation should be on the battlefield, and the sole aim should be to reclaim Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir.”
Criticizing India’s perceived double standards, former Pakistani cricketer Danish Kaneria wrote: “Indian players boycotted the WCL calling it a ‘national duty.’ But now playing against Pakistan in the Asia Cup is fine? If it was right to play Pakistan now, then they should’ve played in the WCL too. Don’t conveniently use patriotism as an excuse. Let sports remain sports, not propaganda.”
