Dear Editor,
Afridi’s statement that the national cricket team was “loved more in India” than in Pakistan shows his guts to speak in support of India and it also gives a message that sport is like a link which excels region, religion, parochialism and patriotism. Cricketers are like diplomats between India and Pakistan, as cricket is much loved in both the countries. No country should stifle freedom of expression. It has been a fashion that whenever Pakistan tours India or vice versa, there are elements in both the countries that come up with such preposterous statements to vitiate the atmosphere. Cricket has been, and it is an instrument of policy-makers determined to send a broader message to the general public. It is love and not nuclear power that can bring the two nations to respect each other.
Vinod C. Dixit
via-e-mail