&imwidth=800&imheight=600&format=webp&quality=medium "Hockey: Pakistan cleared to play Asian Champions Trophy in India, confirms Punjab CM")
Amid the ongoing ban on bilateral sporting ties between the two arch-rivals, Pakistan’s hockey team will travel to India for the Asian Champions Trophy 2026 starting October 27. Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann confirmed this development, adding that Mohali will host the six-team tournament under the Centre's policy allowing India and Pakistan to compete on each other’s soil in multilateral events.
Besides Mohali, Jalandhar is the second venue for this tournament, which concludes on November 5. Alongside India and Pakistan, China, Japan, Malaysia and Korea are also part of this event. Oman and Bangladesh have been named as reserve teams should any country decide to withdraw.
India will enter the competition as the defending champion, having won it on the last two occasions: in 2024 in Hulunbuir, China and 2023 in Chennai, India.
Speaking of Pakistan’s confirmed participation in an event held in India, Punjab CM Mann said, "There is no problem in multi-national tournaments. Maybe individual series (India and Pakistan) cannot take place.”
Although the centre’s sports policy bars bilateral sporting ties with Pakistan after the horrific Pahalgam terror attack last year, the sports ministry, in line with the Olympic Charter, has maintained that Pakistani athletes are welcome and can compete in India in multinational events. Meanwhile, despite that stance, Pakistan withdrew from the Junior Hockey World Cup in Tamil Nadu last year, citing tensions between the two countries following Operation Sindoor.
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Mann said Jalandhar will host all league matches, while Mohali will play host to Asian Champions Trophy semifinals and the final. CM Mann reaffirmed his government's commitment to successfully organise this tournament, with Punjab hosting the Asian Champions Trophy for the first time.
‘We Share Strong Relations Despite Political Tensions’
Hockey India secretary general Bhola Nath Singh also reflected on this development, saying the relationship between the hockey federations of India and Pakistan ‘remains strong’ despite political tensions.
"I want to say this on record that we share very good relations between the hockey federations of India and Pakistan.
"You must have noticed that whenever I go, if the Indian team defeats Pakistan, I meet the Pakistani team first. The boys (players) there also show immense respect," Singh said.
