Former Indian cricket captain Kapil Dev on Tuesday rebuked a reporter for asking why Pakistan had not been invited for the third edition of the Kabaddi World Cup being hosted by India, PTI reported. Dev, who was the chief guest at a press conference in Mumbai to announce India’s squad for the tournament, said, “If you are a Hindustani you should not ask the question at all. Is it the time to ask this question?” He appeared to be refering to a militant attack on an Army base that killed 18 soldiers in the Uri sector of Jammu and Kashmir.
Dev, who also unveiled the official Indian jersey for the tournament, said “such things” needed to be decided by the country's government. “As sportsmen representing the country if we are told to jump into a pond, we will readily do it.” The 14-member team will be led by raider Anup Kumar, with all-rounder Manjeet Chillar as his deputy. Balwan Singh is India’s head coach, with E Baskaran as the deputy coach. Twelve countries will take part in the competition.
Relations between India and Pakistan have become tense following the Uri attack, with New Delhi deciding to “diplomatically isolate” Islamabad at all international fora. The decision came after India said it had evidence linking the attack to Pakistan. The National Investigation Agency has begun its inquiry into the attack.
Here is the full list of the countries participating in the World Cup:
- Argentina
- Australia
- Bangladesh
- England
- India
- Iran
- Japan
- Kenya
- Poland
- South Korea
- Thailand
- United States of America
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