Asia Cup decision driven by India’s Olympic ambitions, not cricketing sentiment

India, as a major global player, wants to host the 2030 CWG

There are many who have questioned the decision to host the Asia Cup and the decision to play Pakistan. It is assumed that the decision is a BCCI call. Nothing can be far from the truth. The BCCI can never take the call unilaterally. To play or not, to have anything to do with Pakistan or not couldn’t have been decided without a nod from the central government.

Also, the government is certainly not looking at this as a resumption of sports ties. Rather, such a thing is far off and will surely not be done in the foreseeable future. The decision is actually prompted by India’s geo political ambitions. It is prompted by what the Prime Minister’s vision of India is and why the PM’s trip to the UK for example was undertaken.

India, as a major global player, wants to host the 2030 CWG. More importantly India wants to host the 2036 Olympics and if insiders are to be believed have a very realistic chance of winning the bid.

Not hosting the Asia cup or not allowing Pakistan hockey team to tour India for the junior World Cup is a step against this ambition.

If India doesn’t stage the Asia cup or doesn’t allow Pakistan players to come and play hockey, Pakistan will put forward the argument that India isn’t ready to stage an international event of the scale of the Olympics for they don’t allow Pakistan athletes to come to India.

They will try to rally international support and chances are China will come to Pakistan’s defence and create a hue and cry. Pakistan, on their own, can never harbour these ambitions. They will never ever host an Olympic Games. But what they can do is spoil India’s party if the government takes one wrong step.

It is with the above ambitions in mind that the government had allowed Pakistan hockey players to come to India. Whether or not they do so is a very different matter. The truth is the government of India had allowed them. It is on the same lines that the government has allowed the BCCI to stage the Asia cup and play Pakistan in Dubai.

It is not about cricket over country. Never was. It is also not about prioritising sport over anything else. Cricket will never be more important than national ambition and both the government of India and the BCCI are aware of this ground reality. Rather, it is about India’s global positioning. About India’s ambitions as a super power under PM Modi. And unless the Asia cup decision is seen in the right context, people will inevitably make the mistake of sensationalising and not understanding the real motive of the government.