India vs Pakistan Cricket: BCCI alarmed by attack on Imran Khan, official says 'Pakistan not safe to travel'

India vs Pakistan Cricket: The recent attempt on the life of former captain and prime minister Imran Khan has alarmed BCCI. India and Pakistan have not played bilateral series since 2012 with geo-political tensions meaning that the two sides only meet in ICC tournaments and Asia Cups. 2023 will see the two countries go head to head with India hosting the World Cup, while Pakistan have the rights for the Asia Cup 2023. Follow India vs Pakistan Cricket live updates on Insidesport.IN

“You saw the recent attempt on Imran Khan. If a former PM and beloved cricketer can be attacked who says the visiting team won’t be?” a senior BCCI official told Insidesport.

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India vs Pakistan Cricket: BCCI alarmed by attack on Imran Khan, official says ‘Pakistan not safe to travel’ as impasse over 2023 WC, Champions Trophy continues, Check Details

India and Pakistan clashed in the ongoing T20 World Cup at the MCG, with a record 90,000 crowd attending the match. While both teams played a thriller of a contest, the build-up to the game was intense with BCCI and PCB both playing a war of words.

BCCI Secretary Jay Shah set the ball rolling after declaring India won’t travel to Pakistan, with PCB hitting back suggesting that they would boycott the 2023 World Cup in the country.India have not travelled to Pakistan since 2008, and BCCI remains adamant regarding the same.

The recent attack on Imran Khan has done little to allay the Indian board’s fears and the impasse is set to continue. The former Pakistan captain and Prime Minister was shot in the leg last week, during a protest rally.

“Obviously, there will be exchanges. But see, as we said multiple times, visiting Pakistan is not in our hands. It is up to the government of India. Plus, the political situation in Pakistan is already tense. You saw the recent attempt on Imran Khan. If a former PM and beloved cricketer can be attacked who says the visiting team won’t be? It’s not really safe at the moment. But yes, there will be dialogues for 2023 WC,” a senior BCCI official told InsideSport.

The last bilateral tour between the two teams was back in 2012. Pakistan had travelled to India for a limited-overs series on that occasion. The Men in Green have since come to India for the 2016 World Cup. That was the last time. Since then, the two teams have only played in neutral venues.

𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐞𝐦𝐢𝐬 🙌#TeamIndia | #T20WorldCup pic.twitter.com/4avLw1VgOT

— BCCI (@BCCI) November 6, 2022

India vs Pakistan Cricket: Why BCCI unlikely to get Govt of India’s NOD for Pakistan visit?

The government of India has refused any bilateral relation, accusing Pakistan of terror funding.
India only engages with Pakistan at world forums publically. There has been no diplomatic relations since Narendra Modi’s visit to Pakistan in 2015.
Following Pulwama and Pathankot attacks and subsequent surgical strike, the relation has only worsened.
As a result, the GoI is all set to deny BCCI’s request to visit Pakistan for the 50-over Asia Cup in 2023.
However, there could be repercussions.
India are set to host the ICC World Cup in 2023 and Pakistan government might deny participating.
Pakistan will also host the ICC Champions Trophy in 2025.
If the GoI gives green signal for a visit to Pakistan for an ACC tournament, it could open up an avenue for bilateral cricket.
At the moment, there is still time and if the government of India changes its stance and relations improve, it could be possible in future.

As for India’s Future Tour Program, the board has sent a note to all its state bodies listing down the entire FTP cycle for the next 4 years. The BCCI can’t take any decision on a bilateral series with Pakistan until it gets a nod from the Government of India. The board has kept the columns for games against Pakistan ‘blank’.

With the BJP government in power, the message has been very clear: No diplomatic ties until Pakistan stops terror funding. The BCCI has also refused to travel to Pakistan for the Asia Cup 2023. As a result, PCB has threatened to quit Asian Cricket Council while boycotting the ICC World Cup in India. But as PCB relies heavily on ICC for funding, it is unlikely that Pakistan can pull out of the World Cup. The hefty fine will be difficult to deal with.