Indian journalist claims Women\u2019s World Cup match between Green Shirts and Indian side will have \u201clots of off-field drama\u201d
\n KARACHI
\nConcerns have emerged that India could once again politicise cricket, this time at the ICC Women\u2019s World Cup, where arch-rivals Pakistan and India are set to face off on October 5 in Colombo, Sri Lanka.
\nIndian sports journalist Boria Majumdar suggested in a social media post that the upcoming women\u2019s fixture would carry the same off-field tensions witnessed during the recent Asia Cup, where India\u2019s men\u2019s team drew criticism for unsportsmanlike behaviour. \u201cThe India-Pakistan game in Colombo will not be another cricket match. It will be a continuation of the Asia Cup, and the only thing that changes is the gender,\u201d Majumdar wrote in a post on X, hinting at possible refusal of handshakes, heightened drama, and political undertones. \u201cThere will be no handshakes, lots of off-field drama and heightened stakes,\u201d the Indian journalist claimed. During the recently concluded Asia Cup 2025, India, who won the tournament after beating Pakistan in the final, were widely criticised for mixing politics with sport. Indian players refused to shake hands with their Pakistani counterparts in the three encounters during the tournament.
\nThe Indian side further declined to accept the trophy from Asian Cricket Council (ACC) president Mohsin Naqvi because he is a Pakistani, and made politically charged remarks in post-match ceremonies and press conferences. The remarks have sparked debate among fans, who fear that the spirit of sportsmanship could once again be overshadowed by political gestures. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has since then decided to take the trophy dispute to the International Cricket Council (ICC).
\n\u201cWe decided not to take the trophy from the ACC chairman, who happens to be one of the main leaders of Pakistan,\u201d BCCI Secretary Devajit Saikia told the Indian media outlets.
\nThe BCCI secretary confirmed their plans to file a complaint against Naqvi over the trophy row in the next meeting of the ICC, scheduled in November.
\nAs per the sources, ACC Chairman Naqvi, who also heads the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), has rejected BCCI Vice-President Rajeev Shukla\u2019s repeated demand to hand over the Asia Cup 2025 trophy.
\nPakistan\u2019s women\u2019s team, preparing for one of the most high-stakes encounters of the tournament, now faces the question of whether to respond to any provocation in kind or to rise above and focus solely on the game.
\nThere is no response from the PCB on the matter yet.
\nThe recent developments have made Pakistan-India as one of the most anticipated contests of the Women\u2019s World Cup, not for cricketing reasons but for the political baggage that increasingly surrounds it.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Indian journalist claims Women\u2019s World Cup match between Green Shirts and Indian side will have \u201clots of off-field drama\u201d KARACHI Concerns have emerged that India could once again politicise cricket, this time at the ICC Women\u2019s World Cup, where arch-rivals Pakistan and India are set to face off on October 5 in Colombo, Sri Lanka. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-506247","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-sports"},"yoast_head":"\n