Surya and Co. keep Pakistan at arm’s length in Dubai

On Sunday, India brushed past Pakistan in a one-sided encounter at the group stage of the Asia Cup. The match was a telling comment on the mess that Pakistan cricket is in and its staggering depletion in morale. While Indian supporters at the Dubai stadium cheered the win, many television viewers in India followed the match indifferently once it became apparent that India was going to win as it did with seven wickets to spare and 25 balls remaining.

What happened after attracted more attention than the on-field action. Indian captain Surya Kumar Yadav said the team stood with the victims of the Pahalgam terrorist attack and dedicated the result to the Indian armed forces. The Indian team refused to shake hands with the Pakistan players, triggering apoplectic fits in Pakistan television studios. Some Indian commentators too gravely noted that the line between politics and sports stood obliterated.

Surya Kumar Yadav said the decision not to shake hands was deliberate. “We took a call as we came here to only play. We gave a proper reply. We are aligned with BCCI (Board for Control of Cricket in India) and government,” SKY said. His plain speak, bereft of any dissimulation, stated the facts. The anguish over the alleged “politicisation” of the game is disingenuous. For one, there has hardly been a time when cricket was free of politics, race and (pre and post) colonialism. For another, cricket matches with Pakistan have long ceased to qualify as merely “sporting” encounters.

Pak deep state

On the night of September 4, 2022, after another match in Dubai that India lost narrowly to Pakistan, Twitter saw a flood of tweets tagged “Khalistani” targeting fast bowler Arshdeep Singh. The ostensible reason was a dropped catch. An analysis of tweets revealed the Twitter storm was substantially due to Pakistan-affiliated handles acting on an agenda to promote separatism in Punjab. The usual suspects amplified the message. Al Jazeera reported that Indian fans launched a “flurry of hate-filled, racist tweets” against Singh, helpfully adding that “non-Hindu” minorities are at the receiving end under the Bharatiya Janata Party government.

In the past pacer Mohammad Shami has been subject to similar attacks after a loss to Pakistan in October, 2021. At the time, current and former players came to Shami’s defence and while some of the abuse was home-grown, many instigators were “fake profiles” controlled from Pakistan. These handles, passing themselves off as Indian fans, labelled Shami as an “ISI agent” in a bid to promote the narrative of growing “intolerance” in India.

In a interview earlier this year, Pakistan player Imam-ul-Haq admitted the team was a divided lot and when prodded if he saw any signs of leadership, praised captain Mohammad Rizwan for meticulously arranging hotel rooms for prayers and making sure non-Muslims are not present. Former Pakistan cricketers like Shahid Afridi have made anti-India rants their stock in trade. No prizes need be awarded for guessing the reaction in Pakistan had the result gone the other way. It is safe to say it would not have been about celebrating the “spirit” of the game.

SKY ambushes on Pak

This time around, ahead of the Sunday match, there had been loud calls for India not to play Pakistan. The sentiment found support not only among right wing netizens but a wider audience too. Some political leaders and influencers jumped in, seeking to capitalise on the public sentiment. The intention of some of them was to pin down the government by demanding the match be called off. They were aware that Asia Cup is part of International Cricket Council (ICC) commitments and forfeiting a match would not be an easy decision.

This was, in their view, a good opportunity to subject the government to a “forked check,” placing BJP at odds with the “nationalist” constituency. The Pahalgam outrage and the subsequent Operation Sindoor has indeed further reduced the already diminished appetite for any accommodation with Pakistan. The slaughter of innocent tourists reminded public opinion that Pakistan has caused the deaths of thousands in wars and terrorist attacks since its inception and is inexorably committed to the destruction of the Indian state.

By publicly spurning a handshake and unambiguously dedicating the match result to the Pahalgam victims and their avengers, Surya and Co. turned the tables, springing an ambush on Pakistan. The act closed the gap between BCCI, the team and popular sentiment. It left Pakistani tv studios frothing with impotent rage and served to remind those obsessing over “politics” taking over the game just how out of sync with ground realities they are.

Asia CupDubaiIndian cricketInternational Cricket CouncilPahalgamPakistan