Harbhajan Singh, the former Indian cricketer, has asked the Indian team not to play against Pakistan in the 2025 Asia Cup and has brought back the saying that ‘water and blood can’t flow together’. He said cricket should not be a priority until bigger issues between India and Pakistan, like killing of soldiers and terrorist attacks on civilians, are resolved. He believes each player should put their country first.
India and Pakistan can play each other up to three times in the Asia Cup. The first match will be in Dubai on September 14. If both teams qualify, they will meet again in the Super 4s and possibly the final.
Recently Harbhajan was involved in a controversy before the World Championship of Legends (WCL) match between India Champions and Pakistan Champions. This match was cancelled due to a huge backlash on social media.
Before the match was called off, Indian stars like Harbhajan, Shikhar Dhawan, Suresh Raina and Irfan Pathan had said they would play, citing national interest. Later India Champions withdrew from the semi-final against Pakistan and Pakistan qualified for the final where they lost to South Africa.
Talking to Times of India about India playing Pakistan in Asia Cup, Harbhajan said people need to know what’s important. He feels the sacrifices made by soldiers on the border are far greater than skipping a cricket match.
He added the government also believes that ‘blood and sweat cannot co-exist’. He said as long as there is fighting on the border and tension between the two countries, playing cricket isn’t right. He said the nation always comes first.
Harbhajan said the country is bigger than anyone, so thinking about the nation first is most important. India and Pakistan don’t play bilateral cricket. Since the terror attack in Kashmir, there have been demands to boycott Pakistan in big tournaments like World Cup and Asia Cup.
Harbhajan said the country is the reason for their identity and no one, whether a player or an actor, is bigger than the nation. He also said not playing a cricket match is a small thing compared to the nation.
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He said our brothers are protecting us at the border and we should think about their courage and the sacrifices their families make. Asia Cup 2025 was to be held in India but due to political issues between India and Pakistan, ACC moved it to UAE. Mohsin Naqvi from PCB is the current president of ACC.
2023 Asia Cup was an ODI format and was to be held in Pakistan but after BCCI refused to send the Indian team to Pakistan, the tournament was held in a hybrid format with India’s matches played in Sri Lanka. India won the title by defeating Sri Lanka in the final.
Pakistan then came to India for the 2023 world Cup however team India refused to go to Pakistan for the 2025 champions trophy which was then, later played in hybrid model (India matches being played in Dubai) after which Pakistan refused to send their team to India for any cricket event until 2027.
