Amid rising speculations and debates around India vs Pakistan in the Asia Cup 2025, or entire boycott of the upcoming tournament has fizzled out. Indian government maintained a strict stance for bilateral tournaments involving Pakistan, allowing no such policy to entertain the audience, neither in India nor in Pakistan or elsewhere. However, highlighting the involvement of international cricket bodies in multilateral tournaments, the policy maintains neutral venues as a logical choice for multilateral clashes between India and Pakistan.
With this sought-after clarity for the Asia Cup, it is crystal clear that India is set to play in the Asia Cup while facing an epic clash against Pakistan on September 14, with the possibility of more such matches as the tournament proceeds.
“So far as bilateral sports events in each other’s country are concerned, Indian teams will not be participating in competitions in Pakistan. Nor will we permit Pakistani teams to play in India. With regard to international and multilateral events, in India or abroad, we are guided by the practices of international sports bodies and the interests of our own sportspersons.” An official from the Ministry of Sports and Youth Affairs clarified in his statement on August 20 (Thursday).
The importance of clarification grew as the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) declared the 15-member squad on 19 August. The debates for withdrawal from the Asia Cup were evident after the India Champions walked out of both the group match and the semi-final clash against Pakistan Champions. Veteran and retired Indian cricketers – Yuvraj Singh, Harbhajan Singh, Irfan Pathan, Shikhar Dhawan and Suresh Raina condemned the scheduled clash and didn’t shy away from boycotting the match in the Legends tournament held recently in England. Indian travel company and sponsor, EaseMyTrip, also stepped away. This context fuelled the questions regarding India’s entire boycott to ignore Pakistan in the Asia Cup.
After clarifying the policy around multilateral and bilateral cricket events involving Pakistan, the ministry has approved the Indian team to take part in international tournaments where Pakistan is also playing. However, the possibility of the Pakistani team visiting India for a multilateral event remains unclear, as in the last few years, only a neutral venue was seen as a first choice for a high-octane Indo-Pak clash. This latest update confirms that the eighth-country-based Asia Cup will take place in the UAE as per the schedule, with the first match to be played on September 9 with final match scheduled on September 28.
With a growing interest in welcoming the Olympics to India, the future is doubtful, as even in the 2026 T20 World Cup, for which India and Sri Lanka are co-hosts, India and Pakistan will meet in Sri Lanka.
