Asia Cup: Post-conflict India vs Pakistan cricket match divides opinion

Dubai, United Arab Emirates – When cricketers from India and Pakistan measurement onto the tract for their Asia Cup 2025 match connected Sunday, a batch much than 2 points volition beryllium connected the line, according to cricket fans and experts.

The lucifer astatine the Dubai International Cricket Stadium volition beryllium played nether the unreality of lingering hostility aft their aggravated four-day conflict successful May.

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While an all-out warfare betwixt the 2 cross-border nations was prevented aft an internationally brokered ceasefire, a consciousness of bitterness remains.

“People successful India person been precise aggravated astir the lucifer ever since this fixture was confirmed,” Kudip Lal, an Indian cricket writer, told Al Jazeera.

“They consciousness that it’s not close to play this lucifer portion the wide narration betwixt some countries is truthful strained,” helium explained.

“It’s the worst clip for an India-Pakistan match.”

‘Why play cricket successful the aftermath of war?’

Lal said that fans successful India spot the fixture arsenic a money-making avenue for the Board of Control for Cricket successful India (BCCI), whom they blasted for trying to currency successful connected the nett generated by these high-profile clashes.

Lal believes the BCCI, wide regarded arsenic the astir affluent and almighty cricket committee successful the world, could person “easily skipped” the match.

“If the Indian authorities has stopped issuing visas to Pakistanis, if the diplomatic ties are suspended and Pakistanis visiting India person been sent back, past wherefore person the cricketers been asked to play this lucifer successful the aftermath of a war?” Lal questioned.

He expressed fears of a backlash successful lawsuit India suffer the Group A fixture.

Whenever India and Pakistan play, emotions tally precocious and a nonaccomplishment is not taken good by fans connected either broadside of the border.

In the past decades, players’ homes person been torched, their household members person been threatened, and effigy-burning protests person been carried retired connected the streets.

The existent governmental clime betwixt India and Pakistan is worse than it has been successful respective decades.

Despite the governmental deadlock betwixt the nuclear-armed neighbours, the caller on-and-off-field exchanges betwixt players person been reasonably cheerful.

When India past played Pakistan successful the Asia Cup successful September 2023, the 2 cardinal talking points were Virat Kohli’s utter dominance of Pakistani bowlers and the countless feel-good moments shared betwixt some teams.

The lucifer was played successful the mediate of the monsoon play successful Sri Lanka, wherever fans cheered for some teams careless of their allegiances and danced distant their worries during the countless rainfall delays.

Pakistani fans were seen declaring their nation’s emotion for Kohli, and the festive ambiance spilled implicit onto the pitch.

There were memorable player-to-player exchanges that were plucked close retired of a societal media manager’s dream.

Pakistan’s Shaheen Shah Afridi swapped his on-field aggression for off-field warmth arsenic helium handed India’s Jasprit Bumrah a acquisition hamper for his newborn son. Cue millions of retweets and shares connected X and Instagram.

Social media was besides flooded with reels highlighting the “bromance” betwixt Kohli and Pakistan allrounder Shadab Khan.

This time, however, experts bash not foresee akin nationalist displays of goodwill and friendliness.

“The relationship and warmth seen successful the past volition not beryllium connected show due to the fact that thing tin beryllium blown retired of proportionality by impassioned fans, and the smallest determination tin agitate the public,” Sami Ul Hasan, erstwhile caput of the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) media and communications department, said up of the match.

When Pakistan bushed India by 10 wickets astatine the ICC T20 World Cup 2021, Pakistan’s skipper Babar Azam and wicketkeeper Mohammad Rizwan were warmly embraced by Kohli, and each 3 shared a hearty laughter portion walking disconnected the pitch.

“We can’t expect akin scenes to unfold connected Sunday,” Hasan said.

“The mentation and optics of an overtly affable brushwood could spell precise wrong, and things could stroke up connected either broadside of the border.”

India’s Jasprit Bumrah, right, talks with Pakistan’s Haris Rauf, centre, and Shaheen Shah Afridi earlier their team’s lucifer astatine Asia Cup 2023 successful Colombo [File: Ishara S Kodikara/AFP]

Mixing cricket with politics

Hasan, who has worked with cricketers and cricket officials, said the players volition effort to bat distant governmental questions by saying they are not meant to woody with governmental matters.

“Sports and authorities tin ne'er beryllium separated, but athletes aren’t politicians, truthful they can’t beryllium expected to enactment similar diplomats.”

Despite the heated ambiance and tense build-up to the fixture, immoderate fans judge the lucifer tin inactive beryllium seen arsenic conscionable different India-Pakistan match.

“Politics shouldn’t beryllium mixed with cricket, which has ever helped easiness the tensions, truthful wherefore should it beryllium utilized arsenic an avenue to propagate politics?” Asad Khan, a Pakistani fan, said.

“When you bring governmental agendas into cricket, it ruins the crippled and causes unnecessary accent for the players.”

Khan urged fans to enactment speech the politically and religiously motivated chants astatine cricket stadiums and alternatively bask a now-rare India-Pakistan match.

Given the years-long halt successful bilateral cricket bid betwixt India and Pakistan, their fixtures are constricted to multination tournaments.

Cricket fans are hopeful that some teams volition not springiness successful to the politically-charged ambiance and assistance lighten the mood.

“The players should bash their jobs arsenic cricketers and the fans should dainty it arsenic conscionable different game,” Ali, a Pakistan fan, said, told Al Jazeera successful Dubai.

“Why indispensable the cricketers interest astir what happened connected the borderline 4 months ago,” Ali

But cricket adept Lal believes otherwise.

“When the 2 teams participate the tract connected Sunday, they can’t beryllium expected to beryllium wholly detached from the conflict. It volition play connected their minds.”

A blistery and humid September evening successful Dubai cannot beryllium blamed solely for turning the “Ring of Fire” stadium into a cauldron.

Come Sunday, the latest section successful a decades-long bitter rivalry volition person the players and fans connected the edge.

India’s Virat Kohli, left, is simply a steadfast instrumentality favourite successful Pakistan [File: Fadel Senna/AFP]