CRICKET between India and Pakistan is not just a sporting rivalry. It is a complex conflict shaped by the tortured history of South Asia. Sports, in essence, are a form of make-believe in which the visceral human urge to compete and clash is channelled into a set of mutually agreed rules within acceptable norms of safety and civility. When sporting encounters are surrounded by outright hostility in virtually every other sphere of life, the bounds of civility are likely to get breached. This is what happened over the course of three India-Pakistan games during last week’s Asia Cup tournament.
At one level, petulant Indian antics, such as refusing to shake hands or declining to accept their hard-won trophy from a Pakistani official, can be seen as simply bad manners. The deeper truth, however, is that these misbehaviours were knowingly orchestrated for the domestic consumption of a ravenous Indian audience. In fact, India’s ruling political class is left with no other choice, having painted itself into a corner after the reckless adventurism of Operation Sindoor. Their survival now depends on demonising Pakistan and Pakistanis at every step.
In Pakistan, the mood is a tangled mix of annoyance, disappointment and incredulity. We feel disrespected by India’s cricketers and disempowered by the ICC, world cricket’s governing body. We find it hard to believe that an evidently thriving neighbour with superpower aspirations would stoop to such misconduct.
We are also sick and tired of losing to India. Although the overall tally of matches is still tilted towards Pakistan (across all international formats, Pakistan has been victorious 88 times compared to India’s 79), the record in ICC’s flagship tournaments has been abysmal. India leads 8-0 in ODI World Cup matches and 6-1 in T20 World Cup matches, while the record in Champions Trophy matches stands tied at 3-3. The winless record over 13 iterations of the ODI World Cup, cricket’s premier extravaganza, rankles the most.
Ultimately, there is no better strategy than to play the game well.
As debate swirls around Pakistan’s latest defeats, three key questions emerge. The most fundamental, of course, is how to become a better and more victorious team. The second is how to manage our cricketing relationship with India. And the third is about what can or should be done at the level of the ICC to ensure that all matches — including specifically India-Pakistan encounters — are played in a spirit of cordiality and dignity.
The recipe for cricketing success is no secret. You start with a cricket chief who is duly elected by regional bodies and is accountable to multiple stakeholders including players, administrators and the public. This is not the case at present, because the head of the Pakistan Cricket Board is invariably a handpicked political appointee, often with dubious credentials and unclear motives. The overall result is a hodge-podge national cricketing set-up with a domestic configuration that gets tweaked every season, coaches and support staff that are rotated like musical chairs, and grounds and facilities that remain mediocre if not dismal. We have no confidence in this system’s ability to identify and nurture the best talent that the country has to offer, and to keep their skills at par with the top teams.
As for India, it is important to recognise that on account of an astronomical market they are the most dominant force in world cricket today. They are hell-bent on sidelining Pakistan, and we have little leverage in the matter. But their hysterics and theatrics are not going unnoticed. Our best option is to bide time while India comes to terms with its Pakistani demons — some real, some imagined — both on and off the field. Yes, we should take a principled stand to preserve our rightful place in the international game, but we should do it without getting too emotional or reactive. India is an ambitious country with a vigorous and capable intelligentsia; they are bound to come to their senses before too long.
Meanwhile, India’s current stranglehold also limits Pakistan’s manoeuvrability within the infrastructure of international cricket. ICC’s website hosts a 44-page document prescribing a code of conduct for players and officials, including a laudatory preamble on the “spirit of cricket” in which respect is paramount. The document itself is appropriate and admirable. But recent India-Pakistan contests have witnessed serial violations of this prescription. The question comes back to who will bell the cat.
Ultimately, there is no better strategy than to play the game well. In Dubai last Sunday, Pakistan had worked their way to 113 for 1 at nearly 10 runs per over, and the Indians were starting to look nervous. Then a wicket fell, and another. With no Inzamam or Miandad to stem the tide, Pakistan’s innings collapsed in a heap. Still, when India came out to reply, Pakistan’s opening attack dismissed their top three batters for only 20 on the board. After that a missed run out here, a dropped catch there, and some loose bowling at the death, saw India edge ahead – albeit with only two balls to spare. To have come this close in such a pressure-cooker match against a superior opponent despite the omnipresent chaos and disarray of Pakistan cricket represents a silver lining from which we can take heart.
Our raw talent pool faces multiple headwinds in the form of poor governance, the misfortune of a hostile cricketing behemoth in the neighborhood, and an impatient and unforgiving fan base. Nevertheless, there is reason to be optimistic. The need of the hour is to empower regional cricket associations; instill a culture of integrity and merit; pour money into infrastructure and facilities; and develop a comprehensive grassroots programme to identify future stars and popularise the game. Pakistan casts a long and imposing shadow on the game, with a pantheon of heroes and legends achieving much greatness and glory. It’s been done before; there is no reason why it cannot be done again.
The writer, a professor of neurology at Aga Khan University, has written on cricket for international publications.
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Published in Dawn, October 3rd, 2025
