Former India captain Sourav Ganguly said on Sunday that he had no problem with India and Pakistan being in the same group in the upcoming Asia Cup. He insisted that terrorism should end, but the game should continue.
According to the Asia Cup program, arch-rivals India and Pakistan have been placed in Group A and will be face to face at the Dubai International Stadium on 14 September. Ganguly told ‘PTI’, “I agree with its program. The game should continue. What happened in Pahalgam should never happen, but we cannot let it stop the game. Terrorism should end. India has taken a tough stand against it, now it is a matter of the past. The game should continue.
India will start its campaign in the Asia Cup against UAE on 10 September. It is expected that it will play all its matches in Dubai. India and Pakistan may clash again in the Super Four phase on 21 September.
Group A in India includes Pakistan, UAE and Oman, while Group B stars Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Afghanistan and Hong Kong. The Asian Cricket Council (ACC) will allow 17 -member teams for this 19 -match tournament, in which matches will be played in Dubai and Abu Dhabi.
The BCCI is an official host of this session of the Asia Cup but is being organized in UAE as India and Pakistan have agreed to play only neutral places by 2027 due to tension on the border of both countries. After the Pahalgam attack, both countries came to the verge of war, which India responded to with ‘Operation Sindoor’.