Visakhapatnam: Indian skipper Virat Kohli today said that his entire team would stand by whatever decision the Union Government and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) take on their 2019 ICC World Cup clash against arch-rivals Pakistan on 16 June.
When asked about his take on India vs Pakistan match in the showpiece event, Kohli first paid his condolences to the families of Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel who were martyred in recent Pulwama terror attack before vowing to respect whatever decision taken by the Indian government.
“Our sincere condolences to the families of CRPF soldiers who lost their lives in Pulwama Attack. We stand by what the nation wants to do and what the BCCI decides to do. We will go by what the government and the board decide, we will respect that,” Kohli said on the eve of his side’s first T20I of the two-match series against Australia in Visakhapatnam.
Earlier, former Indian opener Kapil Dev had also stated that it is better to leave it to the Union Government to decide whether the country should play against its arch-rivals Pakistan in the upcoming World Cup or not.
The 60-year-old had added that whatever the Indian government will decide, will be in the best interest of the nation.
The duo’s comments came after a demand from a huge section of the country to sever cricketing ties with Pakistan in the wake of a deadly terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pulwama district on 14 February, when at least 40 CRPF personnel lost their lives.
On Friday, the BCCI also urged the International Cricket Council (ICC) to sever ties with countries from where terror emanates after the controversy surrounding Pakistan’s involvement in the Pulwama attack.
“Most countries from which the members of the ICC hail (including the United Kingdom) have strongly condemned this terrorist attack and expressed solidarity with India. BCCI urges the cricketing community to sever ties with countries from which terrorism emanates,” the letter from the Supreme Court-appointed Committee of Administrators (CoA) on behalf of the BCCI to the ICC had stated.
The convoy of 78 buses, in which around 2500 CRPF personnel were travelling from Jammu to Srinagar, came under attack at around 3.15 p.m at Ladhu Modi Lethpora on 14 February.
Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), a Pakistan-based terror outfit, had claimed responsibility of the attack.