Hold your breathing. India and Pakistan are playing Cricket in Dubai today. This somewhat rare exhibition of one of the most intense sports rivalries in the world is being organized for the second time in eight days. And a third match during the T20 Asia Cup is very possible.
But what the two teams from the belligerent countries in southern Asia are not Cricket. In a sense, it is political through other means. This is how his game last Sunday had caused a bitter dispute on the issue of Indian players, who had won the game, refusing to strengthen the hand of Pakistani players.
From Sunday night until Wednesday night, when the game was established between Pakistan and the EAU, a fierce controversy surrounded the handshake. Pakistan protested against the arbiter of the Andy Pycroft party, who, as the Cricket Board of Pakistan (PCB) said, had transmitted to Captain Pakistani at the time of the launch that there would be no hand mark between the players on both sides before or after the game.
This was something that the PCB was not willing to tolerate. Therefore, he threatened that he would take the Pakistani team from the Asia Cup if the referee was not withdrawn from the official panel. Finally, after the suspense had risen to a rupture point, an apology from the Andy Pycroft party arbitrator led Pakistan to appear for the game that had to be delayed for an hour. Pakistan is not very victory, the game has established with India.
Now, the respect and courtesy of the adversary is the essence of the spirit of the athlete. Either an expression of greeting, farewell or agreement, a handshake is part of the social label in most civilized communities.
There are many cases in political history when the old adversaries set their hands while attending an event. A Cricket match between India and Pakistan is undoubtedly an important event that involves the emotions of hundreds of millions.
So what will it be tonight, when India and Pakistan join to play in Dubai? Obviously, the party will take place in the context of diplomatic relations between India and Pakistan. You cannot ignore the four -day war between the two countries in May, which can also be seen as a military party.
Due to how India went to that confrontation, a sample of frustration and anger on his part would not be unexpected. After all, relations between the two countries are exceptionally tense at this time, and an increase in patriotic passions, even xenophobes, is evident on both sides.
Ideally, it should have been possible for Cricket to help reduce temperature. This has happened in the past. But bilateral cryket has been suspended since 2013.
The two countries have only played with each other in multiple team tournaments, and these matches have played on neutral land. It happens that a Cricket match between India and Pakistan is the biggest draw in the game, and for this reason, the tensions between the two countries would affect the way in which the important Crickt tournaments are planned and played.
When I suggest that Crick could really play a positive role in reducing tensions, I have two specific examples in mind. In February 1987, the then president of Pakistan, Gen Ziaul Haq, decided to visit India without being officially invited. It was called an unnoticed visit. His pretext was that he wanted to see a Crick match between India and Pakistan, playing in Delhi.
This was called as Crickt’s diplomacy of the ZIA generation. He had a meeting with the then Indian Prime Minister, Rajiv Gandhi. It was observed that this visit led to a withdrawal of border troops and helped avoid a war.
I remember the great emotion in the country that was instigated by the visit of Pakistan of the Indian Cricket team in 2004. It was a historical and successful tour and the first visit of the Indian team to Pakistan in almost 15 years. It was seen as a means to encourage peace and improve diplomatic relations between the two countries.
What Cricket means in India and Pakistan, and how it governs the imagination of people, is part of the political history of southern Asia.
I was the editor of this newspaper when Pakistan won the World Cup in 1992 and we had this great owner of eight columns: “We governed the world.” Imran Khan obtained his charisma as a captain on this side and paved his way to become prime minister, although not without the help of the referee of Pakistan’s policy, India won the World Cup in 1983, with Kapil Dev as captain of the team.
In 2021, a Bollywood film entitled ’83’ was released, with the approach to Kapil Dev. There have been great biographies in the life of Mrs. Doni and Sachin Tendulkar. But how has this great game fallen to a point where an Indian captain rejects a handshake with his Pakistani counterpart and then proudly defends his lack of manners with a false claim of national honor? Where will Cricket go, as well as relations between countries, from here?
Finally, I must confess that I am not really a Cricket enthusiast. I do not understand many of the rules of the game and other characteristics. However, I often get involved in a game of India-Pakistan and I love watching its live broadcast.
Another confession that I should do is that I am not satisfied with my lack of knowledge of the game. I am aware of so many people learned and sophisticated who have a great passion for the game. Cricket has been celebrated in literature and poetry. There are so many examples that I can cite.
Reading about the Cricket and listening to some friends Talking about a party or an individual performance or even a particular shot makes me feel that I am missing something. Will the Crick between India and Pakistan reduce my regret for not being a great admirer of the Cricket?
Discharge of responsibility: The views expressed in this piece are that of writer and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of PakGazette.TV.
The writer is a senior journalist. You can contact: [email protected]
Originally published in the news
