Brief by Shorts91 Newsdesk / 02:58pm on 06 Sep 2025,Saturday Sports
BCCI Secretary Devajit Saikia defended India's scheduled Asia Cup clash against Pakistan on September 14 in Dubai, amid public outrage following the Pahalgam terror attack that killed 26 tourists. Saikia cited government policy allowing participation in multinational tournaments with non-friendly countries while maintaining bilateral engagement bans. He emphasized that India must comply with ICC commitments for multinational events to avoid sanctions affecting all sports. Saikia warned that boycotting could impact athletes like Neeraj Chopra across disciplines if global sporting bodies imposed restrictions. The BCCI follows central government guidelines distinguishing between mandatory multinational participation and prohibited bilateral contests. Former cricketers and fans had called for boycotting the Pakistan match, but official policy permits such fixtures under international tournament frameworks. (PC: BCCI)
