After the Board of Control for Cricket in India decided to suspend all bilateral ties with Pakistan, the first voice of support among the players came in the form of veteran Indian batsman Gautam Gambhir on Tuesday, who called for cricket to be suspended between the two nations until "cross-border terrorism finishes".
BCCI's stand came in the wake of the attacks in an Indian army camp in Uri, Kashmir. The Indian board's chief, Anurag Thakur slammed Pakistan, calling it a country that "sponsors terrorism". Gambhir also batted for the army, "I absolutely endorse that we should have no ties with Pakistan until the time this cross-border terrorism finishes, because I feel that people absolutely need to put themselves in the shoes of those who've lost their kids, someone who's lost their father, son or husband," Gambhir was quoted as saying by Times of India
The 35-year-old stated that the opinion of the families of the soldiers mattered more than anyone else's, addressing a growing outrage among sections who have called for politics not interfering with art and sport, "Obviously I can say this sitting in an AC room, that we should not play or whatever, that cricket should not be compared with politics, Bollywood should not be compared with politics, but people who've lost their loved ones obviously feel ... if you ask them, you'll get the answer," Gambhir added.
India and Pakistan have not played a Test series since December 2007. The last bilateral One-Day International series was in 2012-13. Going a step further, Thakur had also requested the International Cricket Council to not club the two nations in the same group during multi-nation tournaments.
Gambhir called for citizens' safety to be prioritised over the intrigue and buzz of an India-Pakistan encounter, "I totally endorse that until the time we don't secure our own Indians, our own countrymen, all other things can be kept aside. I totally ensure that we should not have any relationship with Pakistan until cross-border terrorism is over," said Gambhir.
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