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India Champions Forfeit WCL 2025 Semi-Final vs Pakistan; Fans Applaud Bold Stand
India Champions Forfeit WCL 2025 Semi-Final vs Pakistan; Fans Applaud Bold Stand

India.com

time14 hours ago

  • Sport
  • India.com

India Champions Forfeit WCL 2025 Semi-Final vs Pakistan; Fans Applaud Bold Stand

WCL 2025: In a major development that has stirred the sporting world, the semi-final clash of the World Championship of Legends (WCL) 2025 between India Champions and Pakistan Champions has been officially called off. The decision came after the Indian side refused to take the field against Pakistan, citing national sentiment and the tragic terror attack in Pahalgam earlier this year. The tournament organizers, WCL, issued a statement confirming that the match stands cancelled and that Pakistan Champions will proceed to the final by default, which is scheduled for Saturday. 'Public Sentiment Comes First' - WCL's Official Statement Acknowledging the gravity of the situation, the WCL emphasized its long-held belief in the power of sport to bring change but added that respecting public sentiment remains paramount. 'At WCL, we have always believed in the power of sport to inspire and bring about positive change in the world. However, public sentiment must always be respected — after all, everything we do is for our audience,' the league said in its statement. 'We respect the India Champions' decision to withdraw from the semi-finals, and we equally respect the Pakistan Champions' readiness to compete. Taking all factors into consideration, the match has been called off.' EaseMyTrip Withdraws Sponsorship from India vs Pakistan Clash In a strong show of support for the Indian team's stand, EaseMyTrip, one of the league's key sponsors, had earlier announced that it would not be associated with the match. The company's co-founder Nishant Pitti made a clear and emotional statement: 'Terror and cricket cannot go hand in hand.' EaseMyTrip's move was widely appreciated on social media and mirrored the public mood following the group stage incident when several Indian players had opted out of playing against Pakistan, causing the earlier fixture to be cancelled as well. Fans Applaud India Champions' Patriotism Respect #TeamIndia #IndVsPak — (@_nileshkrsingh_) July 30, 2025 Across social media platforms, fans and former cricketers have hailed the India Champions for prioritizing national interest and standing united against terror. The whole country is proud of you for forfeiting the game against Pakistan in the WCL. Lots of love, Defending Champions! #IndVsPak #PakvInd #WCL25 #WCL — Sanket Bhatt (@ImSSanket) July 30, 2025 'Legends not just on the field, but off it too,' wrote one user on X (formerly Twitter), while another stated, 'Proud of our India Champions. Some things are bigger than the game.' The overwhelming sentiment among fans is one of pride, as they view the boycott as a powerful message against terrorism and a show of solidarity with victims of the Pahalgam attack. Pakistan in Final, India Exit Tournament With India officially out of the tournament, Pakistan Champions will now compete in the WCL 2025 Final on Saturday. While cricket lovers around the world were anticipating a high-voltage clash between the two arch-rivals, many are now turning their support to India's decision as a moral victory.

WCL 2025: India-Pakistan semi-final likely to get cancelled; check the latest update
WCL 2025: India-Pakistan semi-final likely to get cancelled; check the latest update

Economic Times

timea day ago

  • Sport
  • Economic Times

WCL 2025: India-Pakistan semi-final likely to get cancelled; check the latest update

Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads The much-anticipated World Championship of Legends semi-final clash between India and Pakistan is now in doubt, with reports suggesting that several Indian players are inclined to boycott the match due to ongoing geopolitical tensions between the two to India Today, most members of the Indian team are not in favour of playing the high-voltage encounter. This mirrors the stand taken earlier in the tournament when India forfeited their group-stage match against Pakistan in protest following Operation Sindoor. At that time, several former Indian cricketers, including prominent names, advocated for a was scheduled to face Pakistan in the semi-final on July 31 at Edgbaston Cricket Ground. However, a new development has added fuel to the controversy — EaseMyTrip, one of the sponsors of the Indian team, has withdrawn its support from the semi-final, citing national a public post on X, EaseMyTrip founder Nishant Pitti made his position clear: 'We applaud Team India @India_Champions for their outstanding performance in the World Championship of Legends, you've made the nation proud. However, the upcoming semi-final against Pakistan is not just another game. Terror and cricket cannot go hand in hand. EaseMyTrip, we stand with India. We cannot support any event that attempts to normalise relations with a country that promotes terrorism. The people of India have spoken and we hear them. EaseMyTrip will not be associated with the India vs Pakistan match in WCL. Some things are bigger than sport. Nation first, business later. Always. Jai Hind.'Earlier in the competition, India had opted out of their group match against Pakistan, with several top players withdrawing from the game. Notably, Shikhar Dhawan and Harbhajan Singh were among those who led the initial boycott. Dhawan had even shared an email sent to WCL authorities, confirming that he would not participate in any match involving Pakistan due to the current geopolitical July 27, during India's group game against England, Dhawan was asked by a fan whether he would take part in a potential semi-final against Pakistan. Annoyed by the query, he responded firmly:"Brother, you're asking this question at the wrong place right now. If you're asking that, do you think I'm going to answer? You shouldn't be asking this question. And if I haven't played earlier, then I still won't play," Dhawan said in a cold voice.

‘Terror and cricket cannot go hand in hand': What EaseMyTrip said pulling out of India-Pak WCL match
‘Terror and cricket cannot go hand in hand': What EaseMyTrip said pulling out of India-Pak WCL match

Hindustan Times

timea day ago

  • Business
  • Hindustan Times

‘Terror and cricket cannot go hand in hand': What EaseMyTrip said pulling out of India-Pak WCL match

EaseMyTrip on Wednesday announced that it will not be associated with the India vs Pakistan semi-final match in the ongoing World Championship of Legends, saying that "terror and cricket cannot go hand in hand". The company is one of the sponsors for the WCL. EaseMyTrip was one of the sponsors for the ongoing World Championship of Legends (WCL) 2025. (X/@WclLeague) In a post on X, EaseMyTrip co-founder Nishant Pitti lauded Team India for their "outstanding performance in the WCL, you've made the nation proud". 'However, the upcoming semi-final against Pakistan is not just another game, Terror and cricket cannot go hand in hand. @EaseMyTrip, we stand with India. We cannot support any event that attempts to normalise relations with a country that promotes terrorism,' Pitti said in a post on X. Pitti further said that the people of the nation have spoken, adding that his company hears them. "EaseMyTrip will not be associated with the India vs Pakistan match in WCL," he added. The company co-founder said that some things are always bigger than sport. "Nation first business later Always. Jai Hind," Pitti posted on X.

India boycotts World Championship of Legends semis against Pakistan: Report
India boycotts World Championship of Legends semis against Pakistan: Report

Business Standard

timea day ago

  • Sport
  • Business Standard

India boycotts World Championship of Legends semis against Pakistan: Report

After refusing to play against Pakistan in the group stage earlier this month, India Champions have now decided to boycott their World Championship of Legends (WCL) 2025 semi-final clash against Pakistan Champions, continuing their stance. A report by NDTV states that Indian legends, including former stars Yuvraj Singh, Shikhar Dhawan, Yusuf Pathan, Irfan Pathan and Piyush Chawla, will not take the field against Pakistan in the knockout match. This move follows heightened tensions after the Pahalgam terror attack in April, which severely damaged diplomatic relations between India and Pakistan. It also comes amid widespread online backlash against the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) for agreeing to play Pakistan in the Asia Cup 2025, scheduled to begin in September. Political tensions behind the boycott The Indian Legends' decision comes in the aftermath of the Pahalgam terror attack, which claimed the lives of several Indian tourists and escalated hostilities between the two countries. In the wake of the attack, Indian players such as Shikhar Dhawan publicly declared that they would not participate in matches against Pakistan, stating that national sentiment must take precedence over cricketing engagements. The group-stage encounter was cancelled after strong objections from Indian players and key sponsors. Both teams were awarded one point each without taking the field. Sponsor withdraws support Adding fuel to the controversy, EaseMyTrip—a principal sponsor of the WCL—officially withdrew its support for the India-Pakistan semi-final. Nishant Pitti, co-founder of EaseMyTrip, said the company could not support events that "attempt to normalise relations with a country that promotes terrorism." He praised Team India for its strong performance in the tournament but emphasised that 'terror and cricket cannot go hand in hand.' Pitti added that the decision was guided by public sentiment and asserted, 'Some things are bigger than sport. Nation first, business later.' Check full tweet here: India vs Pakistan – WCL Semi-Final We applaud Team India @India_Champions for their outstanding performance in the World Championship of Legends, you've made the nation proud. However, the upcoming semi-final against Pakistan is not just another game, Terror and cricket cannot… — Nishant Pitti (@nishantpitti) July 30, 2025 What happens if India boycotts the semi-final? India Champions had secured their spot in the semi-final after a convincing win over West Indies Champions, while Pakistan Champions topped the league table. If India refuses to play the knockout match, tournament rules state that Pakistan will advance to the final via walkover. As of now, WCL organisers have not issued an official statement regarding the status of the semi-final, leaving the cricketing world uncertain about whether the high-profile clash will go ahead.

WCL 2025: India players set to boycott semi-final match vs Pakistan
WCL 2025: India players set to boycott semi-final match vs Pakistan

India Today

timea day ago

  • Business
  • India Today

WCL 2025: India players set to boycott semi-final match vs Pakistan

The World Championship of Legends match between India and Pakistan is likely to be cancelled. India Today has learnt that the majority of the Indian players want to boycott the match due to the ongoing geopolitical tensions between the two told India Today that the team is set to take a similar stand to the one they took in the group-stage match against Pakistan earlier in the tournament. In that game, several top former India cricketers had called for a boycott of Pakistan in the aftermath of Operation were set to play Pakistan in the semi-final of the tournament on July 31 at Edgbaston Cricket Ground. However, on the eve of the match, one of the sponsors of the Indian team, EaseMyTrip, pulled out of the semi-final game, stating that terror and cricket cannot go hand in hand. In a public statement on X, the founder of the company, Nishant Pitti, said that while they applaud India Champions for reaching the semi-final of the exhibition tournament, they do not wish to be associated with matches where Pakistan are involved.'We applaud Team India @India_Champions for their outstanding performance in the World Championship of Legends, you've made the nation proud. However, the upcoming semi-final against Pakistan is not just another game. Terror and cricket cannot go hand in hand. EaseMyTrip, we stand with India. We cannot support any event that attempts to normalise relations with a country that promotes terrorism. The people of India have spoken and we hear them. EaseMyTrip will not be associated with the India vs Pakistan match in WCL. Some things are bigger than sport. Nation first, business later. Always. Jai Hind,' founder Nishant Pitti said in a in the tournament, India had forfeited their group-stage match against Pakistan after several players pulled out of the clash. Shikhar Dhawan and Harbhajan Singh were prominent figures who initiated that had shared a screenshot of a previous mail with the WCL authorities where he had stated that he would not be participating in matches against Pakistan due to the ongoing geopolitical tensions between the July 27, during India's group-stage game against England, Shikhar Dhawan was asked by one of the fans in the stadium if he would be playing in the team's potential semi-final against Pakistan. Dhawan, visibly irritated by the question, gave a stern reply."Brother, you're asking this question at the wrong place right now. If you're asking that, do you think I'm going to answer? You shouldn't be asking this question. And if I haven't played earlier, then I still won't play," Dhawan said in a cold Afridi Stokes FireAfter India pulled out of the group-stage fixture against Pakistan, controversial Pakistan cricketer Shahid Afridi stoked the fire surrounding the whole situation. Speaking to the local media on July 20, the day the group-stage match was scheduled to be played, Shahid Afridi claimed that even the Indian cricketers were disappointed to not play the game and blamed the pull-out on Shikhar Dhawan, who had publicly announced that he would not play the exhibition match if Afridi was part of the Pakistan called Dhawan a "rotten egg" and blamed him for "spoiling" the rest of the Indian cricketers."...Sports brings countries closer. If politics comes between everything then how will you move forward? Without communication, things cannot be solved. The idea for these kinds of events is also to meet one-on-one. But you know, there is always one rotten egg, which spoils everything," Shahid Afridi told the media on Sunday, July further added fuel to the fire by insinuating that Dhawan was an embarrassment for his nation. He went on to say that the Indian team should have stayed home if they did not want to play cricket at the WCL 2025."They trained a day before the match. I think that they pulled out just because of one guy. Even the Indian team is very disappointed. They were here to play. I am telling you, you should be a good ambassador for the country, not an embarrassment," Afridi Afridi's Double StandardsThe words of sports diplomacy come in sharp contrast to the comments made by Shahid Afridi in the month of April, where he had alleged that the Indian government carried out attacks on its own citizens in Pahalgam."The terrorists continued to kill people in Pahalgam for an hour, and not a single Indian soldier out of 8 lakh showed up. But when they did, they blamed Pakistan," Afridi had told local reporters in Pakistan."India carries out terrorism itself, kills its own people, and then puts the blame on Pakistan," he said.- Ends

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