India vs Pakistan WCL 2025 Match Cancelled Due to Tensions

The much-anticipated veterans’ cricket match between India and Pakistan in the ongoing World Championship of Legends (WCL) 2025 has been cancelled. The decision came after Indian players, including Shikhar Dhawan, declined to participate due to the ongoing geopolitical tensions between the two nations.

Dhawan, Indian Players Refuse to Play Pakistan

The game, scheduled to be held on Sunday in Birmingham, was set to be India’s first appearance in the tournament. However, Indian cricketers took a firm stand, citing the aftermath of the Pahalgam terror attack in April 2025, which also led to temporary suspensions of both the IPL and PSL.

β€œπ‘°π’ π’—π’Šπ’†π’˜ 𝒐𝒇 𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒄𝒖𝒓𝒓𝒆𝒏𝒕 π’ˆπ’†π’π’‘π’π’π’Šπ’•π’Šπ’„π’‚π’ π’”π’Šπ’•π’–π’‚π’•π’Šπ’π’ 𝒂𝒏𝒅 π’‘π’“π’†π’—π’‚π’Šπ’π’Šπ’π’ˆ π’•π’†π’π’”π’Šπ’π’π’” π’ƒπ’†π’•π’˜π’†π’†π’ π‘°π’π’…π’Šπ’‚ 𝒂𝒏𝒅 π‘·π’‚π’Œπ’Šπ’”π’•π’‚π’, 𝑴𝒓. π‘«π’‰π’‚π’˜π’‚π’ 𝒂𝒏𝒅 π’‰π’Šπ’” π’•π’†π’‚π’Ž 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 π’•π’‚π’Œπ’†π’ π’•π’‰π’Šπ’” π’‘π’π’”π’Šπ’•π’Šπ’π’ 𝒂𝒇𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒅𝒖𝒆 π’„π’π’π’”π’Šπ’…π’†π’“π’‚π’•π’Šπ’π’,” 𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒅 𝒂 π’”π’•π’‚π’•π’†π’Žπ’†π’π’• 𝒔𝒉𝒂𝒓𝒆𝒅 π’ƒπ’š π‘«π’‰π’‚π’˜π’‚π’ 𝒐𝒏 π’”π’π’„π’Šπ’‚π’ π’Žπ’†π’…π’Šπ’‚.

He further clarified,

β€œπ‘»π’‰π’Šπ’” π’Šπ’” 𝒕𝒐 π’‡π’π’“π’Žπ’‚π’π’π’š π’“π’†π’Šπ’•π’†π’“π’‚π’•π’† 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝑴𝒓. π‘Ίπ’‰π’Šπ’Œπ’‰π’‚π’“ π‘«π’‰π’‚π’˜π’‚π’ π’˜π’Šπ’π’ 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒃𝒆 π’‘π’‚π’“π’•π’Šπ’„π’Šπ’‘π’‚π’•π’Šπ’π’ˆ π’Šπ’ π’‚π’π’š π’Žπ’‚π’•π’„π’‰π’†π’” π’‚π’ˆπ’‚π’Šπ’π’”π’• 𝒕𝒉𝒆 π‘·π’‚π’Œπ’Šπ’”π’•π’‚π’ π’•π’†π’‚π’Ž π’Šπ’ 𝒕𝒉𝒆 π’–π’‘π’„π’π’Žπ’Šπ’π’ˆ 𝑾π‘ͺ𝑳 π‘³π’†π’‚π’ˆπ’–π’†.”

Organisers Respond to India’s Concerns

The WCL organisers, while expressing regret, respected India’s stance and announced the cancellation of the high-profile encounter. They clarified that the match was planned after observing recent sports interactions between India and Pakistan, including a U-16 volleyball match and news of a potential tour by the Pakistan hockey team to India.

The organisers said,

β€œπ‘Ύπ’† π’”π’Šπ’π’„π’†π’“π’†π’π’š π’‚π’‘π’π’π’π’ˆπ’Šπ’”π’† π’Šπ’‡ π’˜π’† π’–π’π’Šπ’π’•π’†π’π’•π’Šπ’π’π’‚π’π’π’š 𝒄𝒂𝒖𝒔𝒆𝒅 π’…π’Šπ’”π’„π’π’Žπ’‡π’π’“π’• 𝒕𝒐 𝒐𝒖𝒓 π‘°π’π’…π’Šπ’‚π’ π‘ͺπ’“π’Šπ’„π’Œπ’†π’• π‘³π’†π’ˆπ’†π’π’…π’”.”

Tournament Format and Uncertain Future Clashes

The second edition of WCL 2025 began on July 18 and features teams from India, Pakistan, Australia, South Africa, England, and the West Indies. All six teams will face each other once in the league stage before the top four proceed to the semi-finals on July 31, followed by the final on August 2.

Led by Yuvraj Singh, India was to debut against Pakistan, captained by Mohammad Hafeez. While the match has been cancelled for now, it remains uncertain how the tournament will handle a potential India vs Pakistan knockout clash later in the competition.

Also Read: ENG vs IND 2025: Bumrah One Wicket Away from Historic Feat in England

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