In a powerful and emotional move, the India Champions pulled out of the World Championship of Legends (WCL) 2025 semi-final against Pakistan, which forced the organisers to call off the clash at Edgbaston.
The decision came amid rising tensions after the Pahalgam terror attack on April 22, reflecting the players’ collective stand to prioritise national sentiment over cricket. This is the second time that India Champions have opted out of facing Pakistan in the tournament—earlier, they skipped their league match on July 20.
Now, while speaking exclusively to The Times of India, an insider opened up about the reason behind the decision and claimed that the nation, India, will always be their first priority above anything.
“We are not playing against Pakistan (in semis). Our country and nation will always be at the top for us, and then anything. India ke liye kuch bhi. We are proud members of the Indian team. We have struggled and worked hard to put the Indian flag on our shirts, and we earned it. We will never let our country down, no matter what. Bharat Mata ki jai,” said the insider.
The source further revealed that the players would have stuck to the same decision even if it had been the final instead of the semi-final. “Even if we had entered the final and faced Pakistan, we all would have done the same. We all Indians are on the same page,” the insider added.
The WCL organisers have respected the players’ call and cancelled the match, which allowed Pakistan to progress to the final by default.
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