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Suniel Shetty says we cannot blame cricketers for playing India vs Pakistan match: ‘It’s not in BCCI’s hands’

BySantanu Das
Updated on: Sept 14, 2025 04:01 pm IST
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India’s Asia Cup 2025 fixture against Pakistan has angered many fans. Many criticised the BCCI for not withdrawing India from the tournament.

The India-Pakistan cricket match scheduled on Sunday at 8:00 pm has become a topic of debate, with several political leaders, and even the families of terror victims demanding a boycott. Many criticised the BCCI for not withdrawing India from the tournament, due to the recent Pahalgam terror attack. Now actor Suniel Shetty has given his opinion on the matter and said that the cricketers cannot be blamed for playing the game as they are ‘expected to represent the country’.

Suniel Shetty said it is a personal call to watch or not watch the India vs Pakistan match.
Suniel Shetty said it is a personal call to watch or not watch the India vs Pakistan match.

What Suniel Shetty said about the India vs Pakistan match

Speaking to reporters in Delhi, Suniel said, “It’s a world sporting body. They have to abide by those rules and regulations because there are a lot of other sports and a lot of athletes who are involved in them. As Indians, I think that is our personal call that we have to take, whether we want to see it, whether we don’t want to see it, whether we want to go or not go. That’s a call India has to take.”

‘It’s not in BCCI’s hands’

He continued, “But you cannot blame cricketers for playing because they are sportsmen, they are expected to represent the country. I think that’s a call we have to take. If I’m not going to see it, I’m not going to see it. It’s for you to decide what each one of you wants to do. It’s not in BCCI’s hands. It’s a world sporting body and you can’t blame anybody…”

The controversy has its roots in the Pahalgam terror attack, which took the lives of 26 civilians near Pahalgam in April this year. In reaction to the attack, the Indian army launched Operation Sindoor, with missile strikes on terror camps in Pakistan and PoK. Meanwhile, Pakistan also responded with cross-border shelling and drone attacks, with both countries reaching a ceasefire on May 10.

The India-Pakistan match in Dubai will be their first encounter since that deadly escalation.

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