The Pakistani veterans team advanced into the World Championship of Legends (WCL) final on Wednesday after Indian players forfeited the semi-final scheduled for Thursday.
The WCL is an international cricket league where retired, non-contracted international players return to competitive T20 cricket, according to the league’s website. The tournament commenced on July 18 and is being held in Birmingham, England.
Earlier in the month, a group match between the two teams was also cancelled after Indian players, including Shikhar Dhawan, refused to play against Pakistan.
In a statement posted on X today, WCL organisers announced: “Taking all factors into consideration, the match between the India Champions and the Pakistan Champions has been called off. As a result, Pakistan Champions will advance to the final.”
The WCL said it respected the India Champions’ decision to withdraw from the semi-finals and “we equally respect the Pakistan Champions’ readiness to compete”.
The league organisers added they believed in the power of sport to inspire and bring about positive change in the world; however, “public sentiment must always be respected — after all, everything we do is for our audience.”
The owner of Pakistan Champions, Kamil Khan, said: “We have been given a walkover by the WCL management as their stance was that whoever does not play the semi-final, the opposition will be given a walkover.”
The Edgbaston Stadium management also said that the WCL event organisers had confirmed that tomorrow’s (Thursday’s) match between Pakistan and India was cancelled.
The management said that spectators would receive a 50 per cent refund and that the second semi-final scheduled for later in the day would go ahead as planned.
In May, Pakistan and India stepped back from an all-out war after a four-day military confrontation — the worst in decades — in the aftermath of the April 22 Pahalgam attack in India-occupied Kashmir. New Delhi blamed Pakistan for the attack without evidence, launching Operation Sindoor. Islamabad has strongly denied the accusations.
During the conflict, India’s head coach Gautam Gambhir had called for a complete halt to cricketing engagements with Pakistan at any forum.
The recent tensions also briefly cast a shadow on this year’s Asia Cup, with speculation that India would pull out of the Asia Cup. However, the two teams are due to face each other in the tournament in September this year.
However, Indian parliamentarians have also called for a boycott of that match.