Fix the India-Pak cricket deadlock

In a repeat drama, mirroring what happened last year, the Indian women’s cricket team stayed away from the presentation ceremony rather than receive the trophy from Pakistan’s Mohsin Naqvi, the Asia Cricket Council (ACC) president.India defeated Sri Lanka in the women’s finals in Dubai, proving their dominance.A record eighth Asia Cup title that should have ended in celebration got mired in familiar political deadlock.Latest India-Pakistan brush at sea revives memory of 2010, 2011 naval collisionsLast year, the Indian men’s team refused to receive the trophy from Naqvi after beating Pakistan in the finals.Such unfortunate episodes, clearly a breach of sporting etiquette, cannot go on forever and need to be resolved sooner rather than later.As long as Naqvi remains the ACC president, it is certain India will not agree to receive the trophy from him. As the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) secretary, Devajit Saikia stated, “This was a firm institutional decision, reflective of the position we have maintained, and was not directed at the players, the tournament or the sport.”India has declared that it will not play bilateral matches against Pakistan, will not send teams to Pakistan, nor will it host Pakistani teams in India.One can argue that if the geopolitical environment is not conducive, then the two countries should not play with each other. But that is not possible in multilateral competitions; India has to adhere to international regulations. Besides, the sports broadcasting revenues through endorsements and advertisements are too lucrative for the BCCI to pass up.Having accepted to play in a multilateral competition, India should have played in the true spirit of the game and not broken tradition by doing what they did. Does shaking hands with Pakistan cricketers or accepting the winner’s cup from a Pakistani mean supporting terrorism or is it an anti-national act? Do such acts reflect the Indian players’ ideology? Sportspersons do not represent ideologies; they represent their team, their culture, their values and act as role models by their achievements and conduct. Sportspersons cannot and should not be used as political proxies.Sadly, it is hard to separate politics from anything today, be it sports, arts, culture, or business, but given what cricket is in India and given how much rides on an India-Pakistan match, it would be good for sportspersons, particularly cricketers, to remain apolitical and not become pawns in the hands of politicians.However, it would be naïve to assume this was not a political decision, and both India’s coaches and the BCCI secretary pulled no punches in stating that they are aligned with the BCCI and the government. Do players have to bear the burden of this decision through their words and actions, even though they are already under pressure from over a billion fans to win?It is tragic that nationalism and political tensions have turned the cricket ground into a battlefield of sorts rather than becoming an arena to unite over a shared passion.In the past, cricket diplomacy has helped de-escalate tensions, albeit temporarily – Pakistan president Zia ul Haq’s visit to Jaipur for a test match in 1987, the Indian tour of Pakistan in 2004, the 2005 one-day match witnessed by the then Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in Delhi and the 2011 visit of Yousuf Gilani for a cricket match at Mohali and meeting Manmohan Singh. Notably, before they embarked on the 2004 Pakistan tour, Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee told the Indian cricketers, “Whether you win or lose, it doesn’t matter to me, but while you are there, you must win the hearts of the Pakistani people.”Relations between India and Pakistan may have touched a low point after the 2008 Mumbai attacks and the 2025 Pahalgam attacks, followed by military conflicts, diplomatic and trade restrictions, and sustained hostility.The solution to end hostilities is to deal with Pakistan at political and diplomatic levels.Sport, particularly cricket, remains free from political crossfire.For now, it is imperative that the BCCI, the ACC and the International Cricket Council jointly find a critical fix in the interest of the sport. Many have suggested that politicians/ministers should not be part of a sports body such as the ACC, citing administrative conflict of interest. In the current case, Naqvi is an active minister of the Pakistan government. Ideally then, the ACC governing body should comprise former cricketers, sportspersons or eminent personalities from neutral countries with neither an Indian nor Pakistani as president.This stalemate cannot go on forever.  In the interest of the gentleman’s game, a source of passion and pride, it is vital that a realistic solution is found soon.The writer is a Bengaluru- based independent journalist.(Disclaimer: The views expressed above are the author’s own. They do not necessarily reflect the views of DH.)

Source: Deccan Herald