WCL 2025: India Campions Decide to Withdraw from Semifinal Clash against Pakistan
Synopsis
India Champions withdrew from their World Championship of Legends semi-final against Pakistan due to political tensions. This ends India's campaign at fourth place, allowing Pakistan to advance to the final.
Indian Champions have pulled out of their World Championship of Legends (WCL) semifinal clash against Pakistan Champions, owing to tense political relations between both nations, reported ESPNCricinfo on Wednesday.
This ends India's journey in the six-team tournament at fourth place, with a win, a no-result, and three losses. The semifinal was originally scheduled for Thursday, but now, the Pakistan Champions will advance to the finals, facing off against either the Australia Champions or the South Africa Champions, who are playing the second semifinal.
India did not play against Pakistan in the group stage
Notably, the Indian Champions side, consisting of stars like Shikhar Dhawan, Yuvraj Singh, Suresh Raina, Harbhajan Singh, Robin Uthappa, Yusuf Pathan, etc, had earlier also refused to play their group stage match against Pakistan Champions on July 20.
While both teams had shared the points after India's refual to play, Pakistan Champions will now progress to the finals because of their top place finish, with four wins and nine points.
Pahalgam Terror Attack deteriorated India-Pakistan sporting relations
Sporting relations between both the nations have once again deteriorated due to a terror attack at Pahalgam in Jammu and Kashmir earlier in April this year, which was followed by an 'Operation Sindoor' by the Indian Armed Forces in retaliation to the attack.
However, things, at least for now, look normal in international cricket, with both teams set to face each other in the Asia Cup in the UAE on September 14, while the Indian women's team will be playing their ICC Women's World Cup clash against the arch-rivals on October 6 in Colombo.