India to strike back in cricket too? Reports that country may not play with Pakistan in ICC tournaments anymore

MUMBAI: India is set to retaliate against Pakistan on the cricket field also in the wake of the Pahalgam terror attack. India and Pakistan currently face each other only in ICC tournaments. However, India's moves are to avoid facing Pakistan in upcoming tournaments. Some national media outlets are reporting that India has written a letter to the ICC raising this issue. However, there has been no official confirmation of this.

There will also be a crisis regarding the Asia Cup, which will be hosted by India in September. India had already announced that it was not interested in hosting this tournament. Therefore, the Asia Cup may be shifted to the UAE or Sri Lanka. However, the Women's ODI World Cup will be held in India later this year. Pakistan has qualified for this tournament. The Women's World Cup will be held in stadiums in cities including Thiruvananthapuram.

Since the Women's World Cup is on a round-robin basis, all teams have to play each other. However, Pakistan was the host in the Champions Trophy that concluded in March. India's matches were played in Dubai in a hybrid model. Therefore, the PCB had demanded that none of its teams be sent to India in subsequent ICC tournaments and that their matches should also be played at neutral venues. The ICC had accepted this in principle.

Meanwhile, BCCI Vice President Rajiv Shukla said that whatever decision the central government takes, the board will accept it. The two countries have not played a bilateral series since 2012. India and Pakistan have always been in the same group in ICC tournaments. The BCCI wants it to be withdrawn from now on. However, teams that refuse to play each other in the knockout matches will have to leave the tournament.