Dubai Cricket Council Chairman Keen On Hosting India-Pakistan Bilateral Series

The India-Pakistan rivalry has been one of the most debatable topics in world cricket. Due to political tensions between both countries, fans have been deprived of some quality cricket between both sides. Recently the BCCI president Sourav Ganguly said that resuming cricketing ties between two countries is not in the hands of the respective boards. 

Meanwhile, the Dubai Cricket Council Chairman Abdul Rahman Falaknaz has offered to host a bilateral series between arch-rivals India and Pakistan in the UAE. After the success of PSL 2021 and back to back seasons of the IPL, the Emirates Cricket Board is confident of hosting a bilateral series. 

“The best thing would be to get India-Pakistan matches here. When Sharjah used to host India and Pakistan all those years ago, it was like a war. But it was a good war, it was a sporting war and it was fantastic,” Falaknaz was quoted as saying by the Khaleej Times. 

“I remember (Bollywood actor) Raj Kapoor came once with his family. During the awards night, he took the mic and said, ‘How wonderful it is to have these India-Pakistan battles in Sharjah. Cricket brings people together, cricket has brought us together, and let us remain this way,'” he added.

“So this is what we would like to do. If we can convince India to come and play here against Pakistan once a year or twice a year, it would be fantastic,” concluded the Dubai Cricket Council chairman. 

India-Pakistan Last Played A Bilateral Series In 2013

India-Pakistan only play each other in ICC tournaments. In the recently concluded T20 World Cup, the Men in Green beat the Men in Blue to create a big upset in the tournament. While India made a group stage exit, Pakistan reached the semi-finals losing out to the Kiwis. 

India and Pakistan have not played a bilateral series since 2013 owing to political tensions between the neighbours. Both teams played in Dubai the last time in the 2018 Asia Cup.