Hold your breath. India and Pakistan are playing cricket in Dubai today. This somewhat rare display of one of the most intense sports rivalries in the world is being staged for the second time in eight days. And a third encounter during the T20 Asia Cup is very possible.

But what the two teams of the belligerent South Asian countries are playing is not cricket. In a sense, it is politics through other means. That is how their match on Sunday last had triggered a bitter feud on the issue of the Indian players, who had won the match, refusing to shake hands with the Pakistani players.

From Sunday night to Wednesday evening, when the match was set between Pakistan and the UAE, a fierce controversy surrounded the handshake. Pakistan protested against the match referee Andy Pycroft, who — as the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) claimed — had conveyed to the Pakistani captain at the time of the toss that there would be no handshakes between the players of the two sides before or after the match.

This was something the PCB was not willing to tolerate. Hence, it threatened that it would pull the Pakistani team out of the Asia Cup if the match referee was not removed from the panel of officials. Eventually, after the suspense had risen to a breaking point, an apology by match referee Andy Pycroft led to Pakistan showing up for the match that had to be delayed for an hour. Pakistan’s not very victory has set the match with India.

Now, respect for and courtesy towards the adversary is the essence of the sportsman’s spirit. Whether it is an expression of greeting, farewell or agreement, a handshake is a part of social etiquette in most civilised communities.

There are many instances in political history when old adversaries shook hands while attending an event. A cricket match between India and Pakistan is certainly a major event that involves the emotions of hundreds of millions.

So, what will it be like this evening, when India and Pakistan come together to play the game in Dubai? Obviously, the match will be held against the backdrop of the diplomatic relations between India and Pakistan. One cannot ignore the four-day war between the two countries in May, which can also be seen as a military match.

Because of how India fared in that confrontation, a show of frustration and anger on its part would not be unexpected. After all, relations between the two countries are exceptionally tense at this time, and a surge of patriotic, even xenophobic, passions is evident on both sides.

Ideally, it should have been possible for cricket to help lower the temperature. This has happened way back in the past. But bilateral cricket has now been suspended since 2013. 

The two countries have only played each other in multi-team tournaments, and these matches have been played on neutral grounds. It so happens that a cricket match between India and Pakistan is the biggest draw in the game, and for this reason, tensions between the two countries would affect how major cricket tournaments are planned and played.

When I suggest that cricket could actually play a positive role in reducing tensions, I have in mind two specific examples. In February 1987, the then-president of Pakistan, Gen Ziaul Haq, decided to visit India without being officially invited. It was called an unannounced visit. His pretext was that he wanted to watch a cricket match between India and Pakistan, being played in Delhi.

This was termed as Gen Zia’s cricket diplomacy. He had a meeting with the then-Indian prime minister, Rajiv Gandhi. That visit, it was noted, led to a troop withdrawal from the borders and helped avert a war.

I remember the great excitement in the country that was instigated by the Pakistan visit of the Indian cricket team in 2004. It was a historic and successful tour and the Indian team’s first visit to Pakistan in nearly 15 years. It was viewed as a means to foster peace and improve diplomatic relations between the two countries.

What cricket means in India and Pakistan, and how it governs the imagination of the people, is a part of South Asia’s political history.

I was the editor of this newspaper when Pakistan won the World Cup in 1992 and we had this big, eight-column headline: ‘We rule the world’. Imran Khan earned his charisma as the captain of this side and it paved his path to becoming prime minister, though not without the help of the referee of Pakistan’s politics, India won the World Cup in 1983, with Kapil Dev as the team’s captain.

In 2021, a Bollywood film titled ’83’ was released, with the focus on Kapil Dev. There have been major biopics on the lives of MS Doni and Sachin Tendulkar. But how has this great game fallen to a point where an Indian captain refuses a handshake with his Pakistani counterpart and then proudly defends his lack of manners on a false pretence of national honour? Where will cricket, as well as relations between the countries, go from here?

Finally, I must confess that I am not really a cricket enthusiast. I do not understand many of the game’s rules and other features. However, I often get involved in an India-Pakistan game and love to watch its live transmission.

Another confession I should make is that I am not pleased with my lack of knowledge of the game. I am aware of so many learned and sophisticated individuals who have a great passion for the game. Cricket has been celebrated in literature and poetry. There are so many examples that I can cite.

Reading about cricket and hearing some friends talk about a match or an individual performance or even a particular shot makes me feel that I am missing something. Will cricket between India and Pakistan lessen my regret for not being a big fan of cricket?

Disclaimer: The viewpoints expressed in this piece are the writer’s own and don’t necessarily reflect Geo.tv’s editorial policy.

The writer is a senior journalist. He can be reached at: [email protected]

Originally published in The News