The terror attack saw armed terrorists kill 26 civilians near Pahalgam. Initially, The Resistance Front (TRF), an offshoot of Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba, claimed responsibility. Then a few days later, they denied involvement in the attack.

India responded to the attack by launching Operation Sindoor, destroying terror camps in Pakistan and PoK. Pakistan also responded with cross border shelling and drone attack, which was foiled by the Indian army. A ceasefire was reached on May 10.

Fans assumed that the BCCI would boycott the Asia Cup and not play against Pakistan. But when the schedule was announced, the BCCI didn’t withdraw the Indian team and received criticism from fans.

Wasim Akram sends message to players and fans

Pakistan legend Wasim Akram weighed in on the situation and urged players and fans to ‘enjoy’ the match as ‘it’s a game of cricket’. Speaking to AFP, he said, “Enjoy, it’s a game of cricket.”

“Forget about everything other than cricket. One team will win, and one team will lose.

“Just enjoy the moment if you win the game. Pressure will come, enjoy that and show discipline because this is just a game. It’s for both teams and for both sets of fans.”

Akram also recalled his visits to India as a professional player. He led a Pakistan side to India in 1999 despite extremist threats. He was also part of the 1987 tour when both countries came to close to war. “I enjoyed every game against India, and so did players from the opposition,” he said.

Commenting on the match, he said, “Pakistan have a chance as they won a tri-series last week.”

“They should not think that we just need to win against India, think of winning the Asia Cup. You can lose to a big team but even then, stand up and play well in the tournament.

“I don’t think the match will be one-sided like India against UAE,” he added.