India Refuse To Play Pakistan In WCL 2025 Semifinal Amid Asia Cup Backlash
India Champions have decided to not play in the World Championship of Legends (WCL) 2025 semifinal against Pakistan, according to sources. The decision will be in line with their previous stance which saw the side boycotting their group stage match against Pakistan as well. Players like Yuvraj Singh, Shikhar Dhawan, Yusuf Pathan, Irfan Pathan, Piyush Chawla are members of the India Champions side. India Champions entered the semifinals of the ongoing World Championship of Legends after defeating West Indies Champions in just 13.2 overs in their last group match on Tuesday.
The decision comes close on heels of the backlash that the BCCI is facing after the Asia Cup schedule was announced. India will play Pakistan in that continental event on September 14. There are chances that the two teams will face-off again on September 21 and 28, provided they advance to the next rounds. After the Pahalgam terror attack in April this year, diplomatic relationship between the two countries nose-dived. Reports said that there was a chance that Asia Cup could be shelved. However, nothing of that sort happened.
Earlier, the league stage game between the two nations was officially called off, following strong objections from Indian players and a principal tournament sponsor, which was follwed by public declarations from former India cricketers, including Suresh Raina and Shikhar Dhawan, who stated they would not participate in the match.
Earlier on Wednesday, WCL's one of the main sponsors, EaseMyTrip, pulled out of the India-Pakistan WCL semifinal, reaffirming its longstanding policy of non-participation in any match involving Pakistan.
"We applaud Team India @India_Champions for their outstanding performance in the World Championship of Legends, you've made the nation proud. However, the upcoming semi-final against Pakistan is not just another game, Terror and cricket cannot go hand in hand. @EaseMyTrip, we stand with India. We cannot support any event that attempts to normalise relations with a country that promotes terrorism.
"The people of India have spoken and we hear them. EaseMyTrip will not be associated with the India vs Pakistan match in WCL. Some things are bigger than sport. Nation first business later, Always," Nishant Pitti, co-founder of the travel-tech company said in a statement on Wednesday.
It has been a roller-coaster tournament for India Champions, who began with a heavy 88-run loss to South Africa Champions (via DRS method), followed by back-to-back defeats against Australia (4 wickets) and England (23 runs). Their only point before the West Indies match came from the abandoned game against Pakistan.
(WIth IANS inputs)
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