Former India captain calls for complete boycott of cricket with Pakistan: 'Can't be played in the shadow of...'

Former Indian cricket captain Mohammad Azharuddin has said that India should completely cut all cricket ties with Pakistan. His strong comments come after the recent terror attacks in Jammu & Kashmir's Pahalgam , which sadly took the lives of 26 innocent people and injured several others.

Speaking during an interaction at Mumbai’s Nanavati Hospital, Azharuddin said that India should not only continue its policy of not playing bilateral series against Pakistan but should also refuse to play Pakistan even in the International Cricket Council (ICC) and Asian Cricket Council (ACC) tournaments. Most recently, India played against Pakistan in the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 in Dubai.

Azharuddin wants India to cut cricket ties with Pakistan

Describing the recent Pahalgam attack as “very, very sad,” Azharuddin said the nation is hurting and that cricket cannot be played when such tragedies are happening. “Cricket is a sport that unites, but it cannot be played in the shadow of such tragedies,” he said.

Azharuddin also spoke about the Indian Premier League (IPL), which is currently underway. He said that stopping the IPL in the middle would not be practical. However, he praised the BCCI’s decision to honor the victims by having players wear black armbands during matches. He said it was a “good part” of showing support and solidarity with the grieving families.

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Azharuddin is not the first one to call for the boycott. Earlier, former BCCI president Sourav Ganguly and Indian cricketer Shreevats Goswami also made similar appeals following the Pahalgam attack.

“100 per cent, this (breaking ties with Pakistan) should be done. Strict action is necessary. It is no joke that such things happen every year. Terrorism cannot be tolerated,” Ganguly said.

“SAY NO TO CRICKET ! And this is exactly why I say - you don’t play cricket with Pakistan. Not now. Not ever. When BCCI or the government refused to send India to the Champions Trophy in Pakistan, some had the audacity to say, ‘Oh, but sport should rise above politics.’ Really? Because from where I stand, murdering innocent Indians seems to be their national sport. And if that’s how they play - then it’s time we respond in a language they truly understand. Not with bats and balls. But with resolve. With dignity. With zero tolerance,” Goswami wrote on X.

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India stopped playing bilateral cricket with Pakistan after the 2008 terror attack in Mumbai. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) agreed to restart playing against each other in 2012 with a short series of three ODIs and two T20Is. But after that, India and Pakistan have only faced each other in multi-team tournaments held by the ICC or ACC.

Pahalgam terror attack

The Pahalgam attack happened recently in Jammu & Kashmir and left the whole country shocked and heartbroken. In this terrible incident, terrorists opened fire on innocent tourists who had gone there for vacation. As per reports, the terrorists killed those people after confirming their religion and asking them to recite Kalma.

The attack has been strongly condemned across India, with political leaders, celebrities, and the general public expressing their anger and sadness. Many have called for tough action against those responsible. Reports suggest the group that attacked the tourists consisted of Pakistani nationals too.