Citing the sacrifices of Indian soldiers, the former cricketer stated that the match is a “very small matter” compared to national duty. Harbhajan’s comments come after he and other players recently forfeited matches against Pakistan in another private league.
August 13, 2025: Harbhajan Singh, a former Indian spinner, has made an emotive plea for the Indian cricket team to skip its match against Pakistan in the 2025 Asia Cup.
In an interview, the cricketer-turned-politician used the phrase “water and blood can’t flow together” to make the point that cricket is a small matter compared to the huge sacrifices made by Indian warriors.
Harbhajan’s words come at a time when tensions are high after a terrorist incident in Kashmir. He was recently on the India Champions squad in the World Championship of Legends, a private T20 competition. After getting a lot of bad press, they gave up two games against Pakistan so they could move on to the final. This recent event shows how people are starting to feel about what he is saying.
Harbhajan said, “For me, the soldier who stands on the border, whose family often doesn’t get to see him, who sometimes gives up his life and never comes home — their sacrifice is so great for all of us.” “This is a very small thing compared to that; we can’t even skip one cricket match.”
India will host the 2025 Asia Cup in the UAE, and the two teams that hate each other will be in the same group. Harbhajan told the Indian players to put their “duty” to the country first and said, “No one is bigger than the nation.” He thinks that all cricketing connections should be put on hold until the two countries’ “bigger issues” are worked out.