IND vs PAK / When India-Pak match is allowed then why is there so much ruckus over the welcome?

IND vs PAK: Curiosity, excitement and thrill…these are the three different stages of any cricket match between India and Pakistan. They start with the announcement of the match and continue till the end of the match. Whatever be the political relations between the two countries, every fan goes through these stages while watching the cricket match between India and Pakistan (now only in World Cup and Asia Cup). All these come to an end one by one, but apart from these three stages, there is another stage which continues continuously, the reasons for which change every now and then. This stage is controversy. No match between India and Pakistan has ever been complete without controversy. The same situation persists even before the World Cup 2023 match to be held on 14 October.

India and Pakistan will face each other in the World Cup match on Saturday, October 14 at Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. The world's largest cricket stadium has also been made the stage for the biggest competition in the cricket world. For this match, the Pakistani team had reached Ahmedabad on Wednesday, 11 October, where they were given a special welcome on reaching the Hyatt Regency Hotel. All the players were made to wear special turbans, rose petals were sprinkled on them, folk dance was also performed in front of them and drums were also played while entering the hotel. Now people have started having objections to this dance and drumming itself. Is this objection correct? Should it be like this?

First look at these controversies

Before answering these questions, let us tell you a little about the various controversies going on regarding this match. First of all, the very existence of this match was in question till a few months ago. After the conflict between the cricket boards of India and Pakistan regarding the organization of Asia Cup, there was a time when clouds of doubt were hovering over this match. This controversy ended but a big uproar started from the day when the Pakistani team reached Hyderabad for the World Cup and was given a warm welcome at the airport. Many people in the country did not like all this and questions were raised on their patriotism. Even BCCI came under target.

Touchdown Ahmedabad 🛬

📹 Capturing the journey, featuring a surprise in-flight celebration 🤩#CWC23 | #DattKePakistani | #WeHaveWeWill pic.twitter.com/qxe0mO9p8X

— Pakistan Cricket (@TheRealPCB) October 11, 2023

The Pakistani team stayed here for 12 days and they also got tremendous support here. Even when Pakistan achieved the record target of 345 runs against Sri Lanka, slogans were raised in the stadium – “Jeetega bhai jeetega.Pakistan will win”. Some enthusiastic fans even waved the flag of Pakistan. Now there was bound to be objection on this and again there was an uproar as to why action was not taken against such people.

Heartened by the hotel welcome in Hyderabad following our second #CWC23 win ✨#DattKePakistani | #WeHaveWeWill pic.twitter.com/PAbklmP6n0

— Pakistan Cricket (@TheRealPCB) October 11, 2023

Is the uproar over the welcome justified?

Now let's return to the latest controversy. Should the Pakistani team have received such a warm welcome in the hotel in Ahmedabad? The simple answer is – why not? This answer is clear because India has invited Pakistan to play in the World Cup. The Pakistani team and its support staff were allowed to come from the Indian side only. Pakistan had even said during the Asia Cup controversy that their matches should be held in some other country instead of India. Despite this, the ICC and the Indian Board had rejected his demands.

Thank you to the Hyderabad crowd for the support and making your presence felt 🔊👏

📹 WATCH 👉 https://t.co/uLYzCHVEJ9#PAKvSL | #CWC23 pic.twitter.com/4qRapJ0Vaz

— Pakistan Cricket (@TheRealPCB) October 11, 2023

That is, if India itself has invited Pakistan and if you have invited someone, then Indian culture says that the guest should be fully respected. Not only this, such welcoming of the Pakistani team in the hotel was the hotel management's own decision. That was not a decision related to BCCI or the Government of India, nor can any action be taken on it. Not only Pakistan, but the hotels in all the cities where the teams have gone to play are welcoming them in different ways.

The question should be on this double attitude

Questions arise on the decision of BCCI, which has surprised everyone. BCCI (or ICC) had not organized the opening ceremony for this World Cup, on which some people had objected, while many fans seemed happy with it. But the special events organized by BCCI for the India-Pakistan match are really shocking. BCCI will organize a colorful program at the Ahmedabad Stadium before the India-Pakistan match.

There are reports that Bollywood singer Arijit Singh will perform on this occasion and apart from this there will be other programs also. BCCI has especially invited big stars like Amitabh Bachchan and Rajinikanth. BCCI itself has always said that due to the policies of the government, they cannot play bilateral series with Pakistan nor can they go to Pakistan. If this is the policy then what is the need to create so much drama for this match? Therefore, the question should be on the double behavior of the organizers and not on common courtesy.