Mahajan Rohan
Cricket is not just a game in India but is worshipped like a religion. Since many Indians have played cricket since childhood, it is often considered synonymous with the term ‘Sports’. Sports rivalries are great and the ‘India-Pakistan cricket rivalry’ is one of the most exciting and intense sporting rivalries in the world. There are many reasons for this rivalry, like historical and extremely bitter diplomatic relations. But it is also true that the common heritage of cricket between these two nations is hardly shared by any other countries in the world. The India-Pakistan match always instills new energy in the fans. Millions of people around the world are excited and eagerly wait to see this match. The IND-PAK match not only entertains the fans but also fills the purses of sponsors with crores of rupees.
Even though India and Pakistan are neighbouring countries, the relations between them are not good, and it also affects sports. It’s been over a decade since India and Pakistan have had ‘Bilateral Cricket Series’. There has been tension between the two countries for many years, and the last time both countries played a bilateral series was in 2012 when Pakistan was on a tour of India. While the Indian team toured Pakistan for a Test series 17 years ago, since then, the two countries have played against each other only in ‘ICC tournaments’ or the ‘Asia Cup’ due to poor diplomatic relations. The Pakistan team last toured India in 2016 for the T20 World Cup. This was the last World Cup match played between these two countries in India. The last ODI match between these countries was played in England during the 2019 World Cup. The last meeting between the two was in last year’s T20 World Cup in Australia, in which Team India won. India has won 13 out of 17 matches against Pakistan in ICC tournaments. Pakistan has managed to win only three, while one match has ended in a tie. India has so far won all seven matches of the 50-over World Cup against Pakistan. Both teams will be face-to-face for the Asia Cup and then the ODI World Cup, to be held this year.
By the end of this year, the ODI World Cup is to be hosted by India, and Pakistan will have to come to India to play. It is happening for the first time in cricket history when India alone is going to host the World Cup. Earlier, the 1987, 1996 and 2011 ODI Cricket World Cups have been jointly hosted by India. The “ICC Men’s ODI Cricket World Cup 2023” will be the 13th edition of the Cricket World Cup. The International Cricket Council (ICC) has released the complete schedule of this World Cup. Starting from October 5, this “Mahakumbh” of cricket will run till November 19. Over the course of 46 days, 48 matches, including 45 league games and three playoffs, will be played at ten venues. The much-awaited and blockbuster match between India and Pakistan will be played on October 15 at the world’s largest Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmadabad. The high-voltage match between the two traditional rivals has already started making headlines. However, Pakistan’s reluctance has started even before the tournament, and the national team’s participation in the marquee event is currently doubtful.
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) is repeatedly threatening to boycott the 2023 World Cup. After agreeing on the hybrid model of the Asia Cup, Pakistan has started playing drama regarding the World Cup. Now the PCB has raised the issue of the NOC. After the announcement of the World Cup 2023 schedule on June 27, the PCB clearly stated that they would come to play in India only when they were given a No Objection Certificate (NOC) by their government. The Ex-PCB chairman issued a statement saying, “This is a sensitive issue, so the board can proceed only after getting permission and clear instructions from its government.” But the ICC is sure that the PAK cricket team will come to India to play in the World Cup. However, the controversy over the venue of the World Cup has not subsided. Actually, objections were raised by the PCB regarding some of the venues. They requested a change of venue for the matches against India in Ahmadabad and Afghanistan in Chennai, but their requests were turned down by the ICC. The PCB is unhappy with the rejection of the request. Since then, the boycott World Cup propaganda of the PCB has started.
The entire issue of Pakistan playing the World Cup in India started with the Asia Cup. This time, Pakistan is hosting the upcoming Asia Cup 2023. But The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) refused to send the Indian team to Pakistan to participate in the Asia Cup, citing security reasons. In response, Pakistan also threatened the BCCI that they, too, wouldn’t come to India for the World Cup. Following this, the Asian Cricket Council decided to organise the Asia Cup under the hybrid model. The Asia Cup will be played from August 31, for which a hybrid model has also been agreed upon between the two countries. Now some matches of the tournament are going to be held in Pakistan and some in Sri Lanka. All of India’s matches in the Asia Cup will be held in Sri Lanka. After long negotiations and the ICC’s intervention, Pakistan agreed to participate in the World Cup, but the dispute over the venue still continues. However, Pakistan has not yet confirmed its participation in the subsequent World Cup.
India is set to stage the 2023 ODI World Cup in October-November, but the suspense still remains on the Pakistan team’s arrival in India. Now a new gimmick of Terror Promoting Pakistan has started. The Pakistan Inter-Provincial Coordination (Sports) Ministry has decided to send a security delegation to India to take stock of the security situation ahead of the World Cup. This delegation will come to India with representation from PCB, and only after getting a positive report from its side; a decision will be taken on sending the Babar Azam-led side to India for the tournament, the date of which will be announced after consultation with the Government, Foreign and Interior Ministry of Pakistan. Looking at the fixtures, the Pakistan team will begin their campaign against the Qualifier-1 team on October 6 and will face India on October 15 in Ahmedabad. Pakistan has to play matches in 5 venues: Chennai, Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Kolkata and Ahmedabad. Host India, meanwhile, will begin its World Cup campaign against Australia in Chennai on October 8. A total of 10 teams will participate in this World Cup. The matches of the World Cup will be played across 10 Indian cities: Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Dharamshala, Delhi, Chennai, Lucknow, Pune, Bengaluru, Mumbai and Kolkata. Now, if the Pakistan team does not come to India to play the World Cup 2023, then in that scenario, the third top team from the World Cup qualifiers will take their place. If the PAK cricket team comes to India for the World Cup but refuses to play against India in Ahmedabad, then in such a situation, India will get a walkover in the group stage for the match on October 15. And if Pakistan qualifies for the semi-finals and refuses to play in Mumbai, the opposition team in that match will directly advance to the final without playing a match. Also, If Pakistan boycotts this World Cup, ICC can impose a ban on them as well. However, in the opinion of cricket experts, this boycott is just an excuse, and Pakistan will have to come to India under pressure.
(The author is a student of Department of Journalism and Media Studies, Jammu University).