The rivalries in cricket are very much buoyed by fans across the world, especially if it’s a contest between India and Pakistan. The cricket rivalry between these two nations is the reason fans always want to see a bilateral series, but at present, the scenarios of such series look indeterminate.
Since 2012-13, the two countries have not met in a bilateral series. It was the last time when Pakistan came to India to play in a three-match ODI series.
Whereas, India’s last visit to Pakistan was in 2006 when they played in a Test and ODI series. Since then, both nations have been meeting in multi-side tournaments organized by the International Cricket Council, like the World Cup and Asia Cup.
Now, former international players Yuvraj Singh and Shahid Afridi have promoted such schedules between the two antagonistic neighbors. Both were present at the Expo 2020 Dubai Cricket tournament final, where they had a chat with Sports360 and presented their views.
Afridi said, “I think, if India and Pakistan were to have a series, it will be something bigger than the Ashes. However, we don’t seem to get it. We are letting politics get in the way of people’s love for this sport and their wish to come together. I think we need to put a few things behind us as well, and so does India. We need to sit down together at a table and talk things out.”
“People need to interact with one another and need to meet up with one another. I always tell everyone that I have really enjoyed my time in India and have gotten a lot of love from there. The same way, Indian players also get a lot of love from Pakistan. This connection and relation should not be severed,” the former Pakistan all-rounder added.
Afridi’s opinions vis-à-vis the Indo-Pak series were regurgitated by India’s 2011 World Cup winning star Yuvraj. Yuvi wants the Indo-Pak series for the betterment of cricket.
“Yes, it has been on and off (bilateral cricket). I remember playing against Pakistan in 2004, 2006 and 2008 in bilateral series. These days yeah, there has not been enough of that. But these things are not in our hands,” said Yuvraj.
“We play cricket for the love of the sport. We cannot choose which country to play against ourselves. But what I can say is that the more India v Pakistan cricket there is, the better it is for the sport,” the 38-year-old added.
