The debate on whether India should boycott Pakistan in the upcoming ICC World Cup 2019 or ask the International Cricket Council to ban the Men-in-Green form the upcoming mega 50-over event or withdraw from the WC 2019 refuses to die down.
In the aftermath of the Pulwama terror attack when 44 soldiers of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) were killed by a suicide bomber, many Indian fans and veteran cricketers have requested the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to cut ties with arch-rivals Pakistan. Recently, the Committee of Administrators (CoA) even wrote to the ICC urging them to sever ties with countries allowing breeding ground for terrorists.
When asked about banning Pakistan from the World Cup 2019, which will be held in England and Wales, former India skipper Sourav Ganguly said it would be very difficult to ban the neighbouring nation.
“The government has already defined the terms as far as bilateral series between India and Pakistan is concerned. India and Pakistan don’t play bilateral series… the last bilateral series was played in 2006. However, I doubt the prospects of banning Pakistan from World Cup or international cricket. It is a big thing,” Ganguly said in an interview to IndiaTV.
“The ICC is a separate institution, World Cup is a separate institution and I feel it is very difficult to implement this here. This is my personal view that banning Pakistan from World Cup or international cricket won’t be possible. World Cup is still far away and we will see what happens then. But in my opinion, it will be very difficult for India or the Indian government to go to ICC and ask for a ban on Pakistan from World Cup or international cricket. There’s less than even one per cent chance of this happening,” he said.