 "Indian fans have demanding BCCI to boycott Pakistan match in Asia Cup 2025. Image: PTI")
India’s assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate said that the Indian players “share the compassion and feeling” of the majority of fans back home, who have been calling for a boycott of the Pakistan match in the Asia Cup 2025 , but the Dutch support staff member added that they will try to put the “emotions” behind them and finish their job as professionals.
A vast majority of fans in India want the Men in Blue to boycott the Pakistan match, which will take place in Dubai on Sunday, as a mark of protest against the Pahalgam terror attack, which took place in April this year, and claimed the lives of 25 Indian citizens.
‘Indian players share the compassion of public’
As a result, it was initially thought that the Asia Cup might not take place in 2025; however, the tournament is being played as planned, with India facing Pakistan in the group stage. Recently, the Indian government also stated that it will not prevent the cricket team from playing against Pakistan in multilateral tournaments.
“It’s a very sensitive issue and I’ve got no doubt the players share the compassion and feeling of the vast majority of the Indian public,” Ten Doeschate said when asked about fans’ sentiments. “The Asia Cup was in limbo for a long period of time and we were just waiting. We didn’t think we were going to be coming at one stage.
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“You know what the Indian government’s stance is and now the team and particularly the players, you have to put those sentiments and the emotions behind. That’s something we addressed in the team meeting today.
“We’re aware of people’s feelings, at the same time we’ve got to go out, and the guys get a chance to play for their country, and they’ll be as professional and focused as they can be given the circumstances.”
Gambhir asks Team India to be ’emptionless’
Ten Doeschate also explained head coach Gautam Gambhir’s message to the Indian players, which was to be “emotionless” towards the match and approach it like another cricket game.
“The waiting period of knowing whether this [Asia Cup] was going to happen was the most frustrating part,” he said. “Once we knew we were going to be here, and playing, we have tried to get on with the business of it. This game, particularly, we haven’t prepared differently, like I said, but we are obviously aware of the sentiments and strong feelings.
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More Shorts“Gauti’s message has been sort of very professional about not worrying about things that are not in our control and being emotionless when approaching the cricket side of things. The guys are professional enough, I am sure.
“Individuals have different levels of feeling on the spectrum of where they feel the whole situation [geopolitical tensions] is, but the messaging has been to focus on the cricket, and try to focus on the one game tomorrow.”
The India vs Pakistan match will be played at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium from 8 PM IST on Sunday.