Pakistan’s cricket board chairman, Najam Sethi, has demanded that his side’s World Cup games be moved out of India if their arch-rivals refuse to travel to Pakistan for September’s Asia Cup, according to a report on Friday. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has yet to release a match schedule or list of venues for the one-day international World Cup, which is due to start in October. This comes amidst a diplomatic row between the two nuclear-armed neighbours, both of whom have been cricket-obsessed and have fought multiple wars since their independence from Britain in 1947.
Pakistan is set to host the Asia Cup, another 50-over tournament, in September, in which India is a regular participant. However, the BCCI has refused to travel to Pakistan for several years, citing the diplomatic tensions and the country’s challenging security situation. It wants its Asia Cup games moved out of Pakistan. The delay in scheduling the World Cup appears to revolve around how to accommodate Pakistan, which has led to uncertainty regarding the event’s arrangements.
Sethi demanded a reciprocal arrangement for the World Cup, stating that if India wants to have a neutral venue and accepts the hybrid model, then Pakistan would use the same model in the World Cup. He said that Pakistan would be willing to play their World Cup games in Bangladesh or any other venue acceptable to India, calling it “a model that goes forward and resolves this political logjam” between the two countries.
The BCCI, the world’s richest and most powerful cricket body, is headed by Jay Shah, the son of India’s powerful home minister Amit Shah. However, Sethi called on the Indian cricket body to “stand up” to New Delhi and insist on being allowed to travel to Pakistan as “it cannot cite security as an issue anymore.”
There has been no immediate reaction from the BCCI to Sethi’s comments.
The India-Pakistan cricket rivalry is one of the most intense in the sport, and their matches attract a huge following and global interest. However, the two sides have only played against each other in major tournaments since 2013, with India winning all seven of their World Cup and World Twenty20 meetings.
The Asia Cup is scheduled to be held in Pakistan for the first time in over a decade, with Karachi and Lahore set to host the tournament. The event’s last edition was held in the United Arab Emirates in 2018, with India emerging as champions.
While the cricket boards of both nations have expressed a desire to resume bilateral cricket ties, diplomatic tensions between the two countries have prevented any such event from occurring. The last time the two sides played a bilateral series was in 2012-13 when Pakistan visited India for three One Day Internationals and two Twenty20 Internationals.
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In conclusion, Sethi’s demand for neutral World Cup venues is a reflection of the deep-rooted diplomatic tensions between India and Pakistan. The World Cup is a quadrennial global sporting event that attracts significant media and public attention worldwide. Any disruption in its scheduling or arrangements would have far-reaching implications for the sport, as well as the two countries’ relations. It remains to be seen how the BCCI responds to Sethi’s demand and what impact this has on the tournament’s future arrangements.