Former India cricketer Harbhajan Singh has hit out at the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) for agreeing to play the Asia Cup 2025, which will also involve the Pakistan cricket team. After the ghastly Phalagam terror attack, in which 26 lives were lost, it was felt that India would boycott the Asia Cup and cricket matches against Pakistan.
However, the India vs Pakistan match in the Asia Cup 2025 is expected to go ahead as planned, as it is scheduled for 14 September 2025 in Dubai.
The bitter neighbours could compete against each other in the Super Four and the final as well, if they progress to the next rounds. This despite the India Champions team, which also included Harbhajan, boycotting two matches, including the semi-final against Pakistan in the 2025 World Championship of Legends (WCL) due to pressure from fans.
The 45-year-old former spinner, Harbhajan, has now hit out at the BCCI in an interview with the Times of India as he questioned why the cricket board can’t boycott a match against Pakistan when Indian Army soldiers are sacrificing their lives on the border.
“They need to understand what is important and what is not. This is as simple as that. For me, the soldier who stands on the border, whose family often doesn’t get to see him, who sometimes sacrifices his life and never returns home – their sacrifice is so immense for all of us,” Harbhajan said.
“Compared to that, this is a very small thing – that we can’t even skip playing one cricket match. It’s a very small matter.”
Harbhajan reminded the BCCI that the Indian government also has a similar stand that it would not hold peace talks with Pakistan as long as cross-border terrorism doesn’t stop from the latter’s side.
“Our government has the same stance, ‘Khoon aur paani ek saath nahi beh sakte.’ (blood and sweat cannot co-exist). It cannot be the case that there’s fighting on the border, tensions between the two nations, and we go to play cricket. Until these big issues are resolved, cricket is a very small matter. The nation always comes first,” Bhajji said.
“Whatever our identity is, it’s because of this country. Whether you are a player, an actor, or anyone else – no one is bigger than the nation. The country comes first, and the duties we owe to it must be fulfilled. Not playing a cricket match is nothing compared to the importance of the nation.
“At the border, our brothers are standing, protecting us and our country. Look at their courage, the big hearts with which they serve. Think about what their families go through when they don’t return home. And here we are, playing cricket.
Harbhajan, who took 711 wickets in international cricket, also urged the media to stop highlighting Pakistan politicians as they launch verbal attacks against India.
“Hum unko itni importance kyun dete hain? Are they that important? Are they that important ki har news channel unko chalaye? When you have boycotted them, when you don’t want to talk to them, then why show them here? This is the duty of the media – to stop this. They shouldn’t be adding fuel to the fire.
“As I said, cricketers shouldn’t be shaking hands with the Pakistan players, but the media shouldn’t be showing them and their reactions on television, either. They are sitting in their country and can say whatever they want, but we shouldn’t be highlighting them.”
