‘Bharat mata ki jai’: India stand agency, refuse to face Pakistan in WCL semifinal | Cricket News

Shahid Afridi and Yuvraj Singh (Image credit score: X)

NEW DELHI: It’s official. The Yuvraj Singh-led India Champions have refused to play towards arch-rivals Pakistan in the semifinals of the World Championship of Legends. India had beforehand boycotted their group-stage match towards Pakistan earlier in the match. The Indian group — that includes legends like Shikhar Dhawan, Yuvraj Singh, Harbhajan Singh, Irfan Pathan, Suresh Raina, and Yusuf Pathan — took this stand in response to the ugly Pahalgam terror assault, which claimed the lives of many harmless civilians.

“We are not playing against Pakistan (in semis). Our country and nation will always be at the top for us, and then anything. India ke liye kuch bhi. We are proud members of the Indian team. We have struggled and worked hard to put the Indian flag on our shirts, and we earned it. We will never let our country down, no matter what. Bharat Mata ki jai,” an insider advised TimesofIndia.com on situation of anonymity.India had already taken an identical stand earlier in the match once they opted out of enjoying Pakistan in the group stage.The semifinal between India and Pakistan is scheduled for Thursday at Edgbaston Cricket Ground. However, the Indian cricketers as soon as once more got here collectively and boycotted the Mohammad Hafeez-led aspect.India Champions certified for the semifinals after defeating West Indies Champions in simply 13.2 overs in their closing group-stage sport on Tuesday.“Even if we had entered the final and faced Pakistan, we all would have done the same. We all Indians are on the same page,” the insider added.Earlier, former India opener Shikhar Dhawan was the primary to withdraw from the match towards Pakistan.Dhawan issued an announcement on social media explaining his determination to boycott all matches towards Pakistan, citing the Pahalgam terror assault that befell in April this yr.“Jo kadam 11 May ko liya, uspe aaj bhi waise hi khada hoon. Mera desh mere liye sab kuch hai, aur desh se badhkar kuch nahi hota,” Dhawan mentioned in his assertion.