Cricket is not war; should be played between India and Pakistan - Saqlain Mushtaq throws his weight behind Indo-Pak bilateral series

There have been a lot of discussions and debate since former Pakistan pacer Shoaib Akhtar proposed the idea of playing a three-match series between India and Pakistan in a bid to raise funds to combat COVID-19 pandemic. Former Pakistan spinner Saqlain Mushtaq is latest to join the bandwagon as he said that cricket is just a game and not war while further opining that cricket should be played between both the countries.

Mushtaq is of the view that the job of sportspersons is to do good deeds and hence people call them heroes. Indian cricketers Kapil Dev and Sunil Gavaskar, among others, have already expressed their opinions on Akhtar's proposal.

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"What do you call sportspersons? You call them heroes and what is their job? Their job is to do good deeds. Winning and losing is part of the game. Cricket is not war. That is why I feel cricket should be played between the two countries," the creator of the 'Doosra' told news agency PTI.

A lot has been said about how Pakistan has been suffering for not being able to play bilateral series against India with members of Pakistan Cricket Board agreeing to the fact that it is always a financial blow if there is no series against India. However, Mushtaq said that playing cricket between India and Pakistan is not simply for higher revenues as there are possibilities of relations improving between both the nations if cricket is resumed.

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Mushtaq also downplayed the financial constraints and said rubbished the claims suggesting that Pakistan cricket will eventually suffer because of not playing with arch-rivals India. "To say that Pakistan cricket will suffer because of not playing India is the not right way to look at this. The bigger picture is that the game should be promoted on both sides. And if we do play, there is a possibility of relations improving," Mushtaq added.

"Sachin and Shane Warne had organised All Stars matches in America (in 2015). You won't believe I saw a flag with colours of both India and Pakistan flags. An Indian and Pakistani were holding that together. It brought the two nations closer. I would request the ICC too look into this. Financially also, it is a win-win for both BCCI and PCB. The series is much bigger than the Ashes," Mushtaq concluded.