Dubai: Cricket tensions between India and Pakistan have been heightened by boycott calls in India ahead of their T20 World Cup clash on Sunday.
A series of killings in the disputed Kashmir region has set off the anger, even though the Indian board has insisted the national team cannot withdraw from the game.
Decades of bitter rivalry between the neighbors often clouds their cricket encounters. India has largely refused to play bilateral games against Pakistan since 2008, after deadly attacks in Mumbai which India blamed on Pakistan.
Now they only play each other in international events. The last meeting was at the 50-over World Cup two years ago but even that was at the center of boycott calls.
The killings of 11 migrant workers and minority Hindus and Sikhs in Indian-administered Kashmir have led to the latest demands made in India, which frequently accuses Pakistan of backing Kashmir militant groups. The hashtag #BlacklistPakistan was trending on Twitter Wednesday.
Rajeev Shukla, the Board of Control for Cricket in India vice president, said earlier that the country had a contractual obligation to take part.
“We strongly condemns the killings. However, under the International Cricket Council’s commitments, you can’t refuse to play any one (game),” Shukla told Indian media.
A cabinet minister, Giriraj Singh, had also urged the government to consider intervening to stop the match.
“I think if relations are not good, then this should be reconsidered,” Singh said when questioned about the match. Other politicians have also joined the calls.
However, India’s badminton great Prakash Padukone said, “sports and politics should not be mixed and according to me it (the India-Pakistan match) should go on.”
India was also urged to boycott the 2019 World Cup game against Pakistan because of a Kashmir suicide bomber attack in February of that year in which more than 40 troops were killed.
Pakistan denied any role in the assault but the two countries came to the brink of war. India won the game which went ahead in June 2019.
India and Pakistan last played a bilateral series in 2013 during a brief thaw in their rivalry.
The two countries have fought two wars over Kashmir — divided between the two nations — since their independence in 1947.
Boycott calls add to India-Pakistan cricket tensions ahead of World Cup clash in Dubai
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Boycott calls add to India-Pakistan cricket tensions ahead of World Cup clash in Dubai
- India has largely refused to play bilateral games against Pakistan since 2008, after deadly attacks in Mumbai which it blamed on Pakistan
- Indian atheletes say ‘sports and politics should not be mixed’ and the World Cup match between the two countries should go on
Pakistan deputy PM speaks with Iranian FM as Saudi Arabia intercepts missiles and drones
- Ishaq Dar expresses concern over evolving regional situation as both officials agree to remain in contact
- Pakistan earlier reminded Tehran of its mutual defense pact with Saudi Arabia during diplomatic outreach
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar spoke with Iranian Foreign Minister Seyyed Abbas Araghchi on Friday amid escalating tensions in the Gulf, including recent missile and drone attacks targeting Saudi Arabia that were intercepted by the Kingdom’s air defenses.
The call comes as Islamabad remains in contact with both Tehran and Gulf states to prevent the widening Iran conflict from spilling further across the region, particularly after attempted strikes on Saudi territory, a sensitive development for Pakistan, which signed a mutual defense pact with the Kingdom last year.
Pakistan’s foreign ministry said Dar raised concerns about the evolving regional situation during the conversation.
“Deputy Prime Minister/Foreign Minister Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar spoke this evening with the Foreign Minister of Iran, Seyyed Abbas Araghchi,” the ministry said in a statement.
“The DPM/FM expressed concern over the evolving regional situation. The two agreed to remain in touch on the developments,” it added.
The ministry did not share details of the conversation, though it came amid fast-moving developments in the region, with Saudi Arabia saying its air defenses intercepted multiple missiles and drones early on Friday.
Earlier this week, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s adviser on political affairs Rana Sanaullah said Pakistan was in contact with Iran to discourage attacks on Gulf countries and prevent misunderstandings.
“Such attacks should not be carried out from Iran’s side,” he told Geo TV.
Prior to that, the deputy prime minister told Pakistan’s Senate that Islamabad had engaged both Iran and Saudi Arabia at the outset of Iran’s retaliation in the region, reminding Tehran of its defense agreement with Saudi Arabia and conveying assurances from Riyadh that Saudi territory would not be used against Iran.
Pakistan says its administration is striving to end the conflict, though the United States-Israeli strikes on Iran, which triggered the war and led to its spillover, have only intensified.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said on Friday some countries had begun mediation efforts but insisted Tehran would defend its sovereignty.
Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump has called for Iran’s “unconditional surrender” on his Truth Social platform as the confrontation shows little sign of easing.
