What the controversy regarding the India-Pakistan series says about our country

Cricket is not just a sport in India. It’s a way of life, and as clichéd as it sounds, it has the power to unite people in joy (think of World cup wins or semi-final clashes with Pakistan, Bangladesh or Australia) or in collective anger, especially after a harrowing defeat.

However, what has remained constant since time immemorial is that cricket has always triumphed and been a staple of our sports diet, even at the cost of other sports’ fight for recognition.

But, for the first time, it seems like the spirit of cricket might be leveling down in the country, and there’s no better proof of that, than the recent controversy surrounding the possibility of the India vs Pakistan cricket series taking place.

Both the teams who make for excellent rivals on field and are brimming with talent haven’t played Test cricket since 2007 though Pakistan toured India in the winter of 2012-2013 for a short-limited over series, clearly highlighting the anticipation of cricket fans to see the Indian cricket team clash with their Pakistani counterpart once again.

So, what’s the holdup and when did a harmless cricket series between these two countries snowball into a controversy?

It all started when the issue of bilateral cricket resuming between India and Pakistan took centre stage and was debated incessantly due to the escalating border tensions between these two countries. The fact that both the cricket boards (BCCI and PCB) were at loggerheads regarding the venue of the scheduled series in December didn’t help matters either.

Even as IPL chairman Rajeev Shukla pushed for the resumption of cricket ties between the two countries, stressing on the fact that cricket should not be mixed politics, his suggestion fell to deaf ears with the BCCI refusing to give out an official comment regarding the series.
Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on the other hand has made its consent regarding the series clear and it was decided that the bilateral series would be held at a neutral venue, i.e., Srilanka.

Though, it’s a given that the PCB’s decision was also wrapped in politics, considering the venue is a massive relief for the PCB, as it solved the broadcasting rights issue for them.

“If the series was to be held in India, the broadcasting rights for the same would go to Star Sports as it has the exclusive rights of covering home, which would mean massive loss of revenue for PCB, whose multi-million dollar deal hinges on a match with India. And, now with Srilanka being the possible venue, Dubai-based Ten Sports will officially be the sole broadcaster of the series and as a result save PCB a lot of money,” said a Star Sports official on request of anonymity.

However, BCCI who had sought an approval from the external affairs ministry is yet to offer an official statement as it is still waiting for a go-ahead from the government on the scheduled series. Pakistan’s Nawaz Sharif has given his consent.

Till date, the government remains mum on the issue due to the politics and animosity that’s in question between the two nations. If that wasn’t bad enough, social media has been taken by storm with tweets against India playing Pakistan, with the hashtag #NoCricketWithPakistan trending at no 1 for a few days.

There were tweets from people hinting that it would be an injustice to what happened in Mumbai if the government does intend to go ahead with the series. Another said, Modi should respect the public sentiment (which is against a match between the two countries) and instead cancel it.

What they refuse to understand is that cricket or any sports for that matter has nothing to do with politics and for the first time they are encouraging an environment when cricket will end up being the loser.