Former Pakistan captain Javed Miandad has strongly criticized the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) for not sending his men’s team to the 2023 Asian Cup. The former middle-order batsman stated that Pakistan does not need India to survive and that the ICC must take action against them.
Following the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) meeting this week, the BCCI further strengthened its stance on the Indian team not traveling to Pakistan to play in this year’s Asian Cup.
The reason given by the Indian junta is that they will not receive authorization from the government authorities to travel to Pakistan, due to diplomatic tensions between the two.
Speaking at a recent public event, Miandad lashed out at India, stating that teams should be excluded if they do not tour and that he has always backed Pakistan.
He said:
“India can go to hell if they don’t want to come to Pakistan to play cricket. I’ve always backed Pakistan. And you know I don’t let India off the hook every time there’s a problem. But the thing is, we have to do our part. And We must fight for it.”
added:
“We don’t care because we will be hosting our cricket. This is ICC’s job. If ICC can’t control this, there is no use for the governing body. They need to implement similar rules for every team. If teams like these don’t come, must be excluded.”
India has not toured Pakistan since 2008, while the two teams have not played in a bilateral series since 2012-13. The two giants from the subcontinent meet only at Asian Cups and ICC events, and the Men in Blue hold the aces in those.
“For them, it becomes a problem if they come here and lose to us” – Javed Miandad
Javed Miandad predicted that India will not play Pakistan because they are a superior team on the pitch and things will turn chaotic if the Men in Blue lose.
The 65-year-old man stated:
“Come play. Why don’t they? They run. It becomes a problem for them if they come here and lose to us. The public there can’t stand it. It’s always been like that. During our time, they used to not play for the same reason. Riots and fights take place there. The crowd there is very unpleasant. You would have seen every time India loses, for anyone, the crowd burns houses. When we used to play, they had faced such problems.”
India’s ten wicket loss to Babar Azam and company. at the 2021 T20 World Cup game in Dubai sparked widespread outrage, with closer Mohammed Shami facing religiously motivated backlash. It is also Pakistan’s only victory to date over their arch-rivals in the World Cups.