International cricket games aren’t complete without a match between India and Pakistan. However, the geopolitical rivals’ conflicts risk ending the one-day World Cup.
The two sides have agreed not to play in each other’s countries. India’s cricket body has requested that the September Asia Cup, scheduled to be held in Pakistan, be moved to either the United Arab Emirates or Qatar.
The government of Pakistan has taken strong action. Islamabad announced in early March that the country would not be sending a side to the World Cup, which will be held in India between October and November. The decision was made for security reasons.
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Cricket experts are concerned that a Pakistani boycott of the World Cup in its neighboring country will be detrimental to the game and might transform it into a battleground for the political rivalry between the two countries for years to come. Long-standing tensions have been caused by India’s accusations that Pakistan is responsible for cross-border terrorism and the situation in Kashmir.
Simon Chadwick, a professor of sport and geopolitical economy at the SKEMA Business School in Paris, remarked, “This matter is not just about two nations and one tournament, but about who plays cricket, where they play it, and who exercises power over the sport.”
According to Pakistani experts, the stalemate is due to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s unyielding stance.
When invited to play in India, Pakistan has never said no. According to Abdul Ghaffar, a Karachi-based cricket analyst, Pakistan sent a squad to the 1999 World Cup shortly after right-wing radicals wrecked the pitch at New Delhi’s Feroz Shah Kotla Stadium.
Neither team has decided whether or not to play in the other’s country, as vice president of the Board of Control for Cricket in India Rajeev Shukla told a local sports news program last week.
An unnamed official from India’s cricket authority told Nikkei Asia that the BCCI isn’t involved because this isn’t a bilateral series.
The official explained that the Asian Cricket Council and the International Cricket Council (ICC) are responsible for organizing the Asia Cup and the World Cup, respectively, so these organizations must make any decision about neutral venues for the two countries.
Major tournaments have been disrupted in sports besides cricket due to political disagreements. After the governor of Bali declined to accommodate the Israeli national team, FIFA pulled the Under-20 World Cup from Indonesia at the end of March.
However, the economic ramifications would be too great for Pakistan to consider skipping the World Cup.
According to SKEMA Business School professor Chadwick, major athletic events always increase economic activity in the countries whose top teams compete in them.
A nation’s sporting success can assist in enhancing morale and unity. “At the same time, a country’s brand may be enhanced through such events,” he added, adding that Pakistan stands to lose “something of significance” if it opts out of participating in the cricket World Cup.
As the sports editor for Pakistan’s Dawn News, Ghaffar understands that Islamabad cannot miss the World Cup.
If Pakistan skips the World Cup this year, it will be unable to host the ICC Champions Trophy in February 2025, as stated by Ghaffar. He also mentioned that Pakistan could need assurances from India that the Champions Trophy will be played in Pakistan in a couple of years before committing to participate in the World Cup.
Experts agree that talking things out between the two countries is the best chance of ending the problem.
Instead of maintaining polarized viewpoints, I’m crossing my fingers that a middle ground may be found. Former Pakistani first-class cricketer Arzak Khan has suggested that rather than petty politics, cricket should triumph in the end.
Elhai Baksh is a cricket fan from Quetta, Pakistan, concerned that his team would fail to qualify for the World Cup.
He stated that I had watched every [one-day international] World Cup that Pakistan has played in since 1996. If our side doesn’t make it to the World Cup this year, I and millions of other Pakistanis will be devastated.
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