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Published : 12 Sep 2025, 03:12 AM
Former India captain and World Cup winner Kapil Dev has called on players and fans to focus on cricket and not turn the upcoming India-Pakistan Asia Cup clash into a political controversy.
The fixture, scheduled for Sunday, has triggered heated debate in India since the Asia Cup draw was announced.
Some groups opposed the idea of playing Pakistan, citing anger over the Pahalgam terror attack. Four law students even petitioned a court to scrap the match, though their plea was rejected.
Tensions had already surfaced last month when India skipped veterans’ matches against Pakistan, including a group stage tie and a semi-final. Calls for a boycott of the Asia Cup encounter soon gained momentum.
However, the Indian sports ministry cleared the national team to participate, settling weeks of uncertainty.
India opened their Asia Cup campaign with a convincing win over hosts UAE and will now meet Pakistan in their second group match.
Kapil Dev urged players to shut out the noise.
“Just go out there and win. Players should only think about the game, nothing else. Don’t make it a big issue. The government will do its job, and players should do theirs,” he said.
Bilateral cricket between India and Pakistan has been suspended for more than a decade amid political tensions, with the two sides only meeting in ICC and Asian tournaments.
