“Indian Players Will Never Play Against Pakistan” – Ex-Cricketer’s Bold Claim on Asia Cup 2025
Kedar Jadhav predicts India vs Pakistan Asia Cup 2025 clash won’t happen, echoing Harbhajan Singh’s boycott call. Will BCCI skip the high-voltage encounter?
Former India cricketer Kedar Jadhav has stirred the debate around the upcoming Asia Cup 2025 by making a bold prediction: the much-hyped India vs Pakistan clash may never happen.
Speaking in a recent interview, Jadhav said he was confident that India would not step on the field against Pakistan in Dubai on September 14.
“I think the Indian team should not play at all. As far as India is concerned, wherever India plays, it will always win. But this match should not be played at all, and they will not play. I can say this with confidence… Operation Sindoor is a hit, it is successful,” he remarked.
India are drawn in Group A alongside Oman, hosts UAE, and Pakistan. Group B features Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Hong Kong, and Sri Lanka.
The tournament is scheduled to begin on September 9, with the Dubai International Cricket Stadium set to host the blockbuster India vs Pakistan clash just five days later.
But if Jadhav’s words are anything to go by, fans might not get to witness one of cricket’s greatest rivalries.
Harbhajan Singh echoes similar sentiment
Jadhav isn’t the first ex-India cricketer to voice such views. Legendary spinner Harbhajan Singh also called for a boycott of Pakistan in the Asia Cup, stressing that “nation comes first.”
“Khoon aur paani ek saath nahi beh sakte. Hum unko itni importance kyun dete hain? [Blood and water cannot flow together. Why do we give them so much importance?],” Harbhajan told Times of India.
Earlier this year, Harbhajan and several former India players, including Shikhar Dhawan, Yuvraj Singh, Irfan Pathan, Yusuf Pathan, and Suresh Raina, had refused to play Pakistan Champions in the World Championship of Legends (WCL), citing the Pahalgam terror attack as the reason.
“They need to understand what is important and what is not. For me, the soldier who stands on the border, whose family often doesn’t get to see him, who sometimes sacrifices his life and never returns home — their sacrifice is so immense for all of us. Compared to that, this is a very small thing, that we can’t even skip playing one cricket match,” Harbhajan said.
