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Anurag Thakur: India can’t play Pakistan when people are dying at the border
With his latest opinion, that crosses his previous ones, he has made quite confusing what BCCI was actually expecting of the event in consideration.
10 December 2015 • 10:56 AM
Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) secretary Anurag Thakur has taken a 180 degree turn with his new comment on the cancelled bilateral series between India and Pakistan as he says the nations can’t engage in the game of cricket while there is severe unrest at the border. This has created a lot of confusion regarding his standing about the series, as he was one of the enthusiasts who was seen supporting the series ever since the discussions had begun. With his latest opinion, that crosses his previous ones, he has made quite confusing what BCCI was actually expecting of the event in consideration. READ: India-Pakistan bilateral series cancelled: Reports
According to The Indian Express, Thakur was quoted saying, “We cannot play cricket with Pakistan when people are dying on the border. We want peace with neighbours.”
In another interview with NDTV, Thakur said, “Even the Prime Minister Modi wants that. But Pakistan have to be serious on terror.”
Initially, the BCCI secretary had said the game of cricket can better the political relations between the two neighbouring countries and that India should thrive on the opportunity to engage more with Pakistan. “I think you have to take a call (on) whether there should not be any talks. Let other countries go to UN and let other boards go to ICC for decisions, but you have to decide if you want to engage with them. So I think you have to decide diplomatically what call to take. If you engage (with Pakistan), then you can raise the issue of terrorism as well as cricket as well as trade. But if you don’t engage, you give that opportunity to someone else,” is exactly what Thakur’s quotes were. READ: Wasim Akram hopes Indian government agrees to India vs Pakistan series
He had also mentioned that cricket between India and Pakistan cannot be ceased as they face each other in the International Cricket Council (ICC) events regularly. “We play Pakistan in the World Cup. We played them in the 2015 World Cup, we’ll play them next year in the Asia Cup. Then we’ll again play them in the month of March in World T20. So when you play them in a multinational tournament in world events, then what stops you from playing them in a bilateral series. So that’s the question we have to answer.” READ: Anurag Thakur: India should play Pakistan, social media doesn’t reflect nation’s opinion