Pakistan’s envoy to the United Arab Emirates, Faisal Niaz Tirmizi, has voiced sharp criticism over India’s decision to politicize cricket, saying that such conduct damages both the sanctity of the sport and India’s international standing. Posting on the platform X, he remarked that India’s recent actions made a mockery not only of the game but of its own image before the global audience.
Ambassador Tirmizi reminded his followers that India has stumbled badly in the past, pointing to the incident of May 2025 when six aircraft, including four Rafale jets, were lost during a military operation. According to him, this episode revealed poor judgment and a reckless mindset—traits that he believes are once again visible in India’s refusal to maintain sportsmanship.
He further stressed that Pakistan’s founding leader, Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah, had long foreseen the dangers of the Hindutva ideology. In Tirmizi’s words, the hostility that stems from this worldview resembles the hatred-driven ideologies of Nazism and fascism, with its venom still directed against Islam even in the modern era.
The ambassador’s comments came in the wake of the Asia Cup final, where the Indian cricket team declined to accept the winner’s trophy from Mohsin Naqvi, who currently heads both the Pakistan Cricket Board and the Asian Cricket Council. This act, widely condemned by observers, was seen as a deliberate attempt to inject political tensions into what should have been a unifying sporting moment.
By situating India’s behavior within a broader historical and ideological framework, Tirmizi underscored Pakistan’s disappointment at the blurring of lines between politics and sport. He argued that such moves not only undermine the principles of fair play but also highlight India’s inability to rise above nationalist narratives when engaging on the world stage.
Through his statement, the ambassador sought to reaffirm Pakistan’s belief in preserving the dignity of international competitions, contrasting it with India’s conduct, which he described as an extension of an entrenched political mindset rather than a display of athletic spirit.