What’s the story?
In what will come as a blow to cricket fans in both India and Pakistan, the Indian Home Ministry has put its foot down, stating that cricketing ties between the two countries will not resume any time soon. Hansraj Ahir, the Minister of State for Home Affairs said, “In the current circumstances cricket between India and Pakistan is not possible.”
Meanwhile, a member of the BCCI said, “If we want to play Pakistan we can’t get up one day and say, we will be playing them. We need the government’s clearance way in advance so that we can plan it out.”
In case you didn’t know...
India were slated to play a series against Pakistan in November this year as part of the Future Tours Programme (FTP). However, that will not be possible taking into account the government’s stand.
In 2016, the BCCI attempted to organise a home series against Pakistan, however, the unstable situation in the country and the terror attacks on Indian soil prevented that from coming to fruition.
The heart of the matter
According to reports, BCCI had recently written to the Ministry of External Affairs for permission to resume cricketing ties with their neighbours. However, Pakistan legend Javed Miandad rubbished the claims, stating that India were not interested in playing cricket against Pakistan and that they always found excuses to prevent it from happening.
More recently, Sarfraz Ahmed, Pakistan’s wicketkeeper had stated that India are afraid of playing their Asian neighbours and that is why they haven't attempted to move things forward.
The PCB, meanwhile, plan on taking up the issue with the ICC in order to seek compensation for what they feel is unfair treatment meted out towards them by the BCCI.
What’s next?
India will tour Sri Lanka in July and then host Australia in October. Since the series against Pakistan - which was scheduled for November - will not be taking place, they will have to invite another team during that window.
They will, however, face off against the Men in Green in the upcoming Champions Trophy in England in June.
Author’s Take
It is quite disappointing to see that cricketing ties between the two countries will not resume in the foreseeable future. However, it is understandable considering the violence on the Line of Control and political standoffs between the two countries.
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