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WCL Officially Calls Off India Vs Pakistan Clash On July 20 Amid Severe Backlash

Soumyajit Dutta

WCL calls off India vs Pakistan clash [Source: @iteamffr/X.com]WCL calls off India vs Pakistan clash [Source: @iteamffr/X.com]

The highly anticipated "Champions" clash between retired cricketing icons of India and Pakistan has been officially cancelled by the World Championship of Legends (WCL) organizers, who issued a public apology for "hurting sentiments" and causing "unintentional discomfort." 

The decision follows intense pressure, including key Indian players publicly refusing to participate and a major sponsor withdrawing support specifically for the fixture.

WCL Issues Statement Confirming Cancellation

The WCL announced the cancellation via a statement posted on their official X (formerly Twitter) handle ahead of the fixture on 4:18 AM IST on July 20. The lengthy apology letter explained their initial rationale but acknowledged the fallout.

"Dear All, We at WCL have always cherished and loved cricket, and our only aim has been to give fans some good, happy moments. After hearing the news that the Pakistan hockey team will be coming to India this year, and seeing the recent India vs Pakistan volleyball match along with a few other fixtures between the two nations in different sports, we thought of continuing with the India vs Pakistan match at WCL, just to create some happy memories for people around the globe," the post stated.

The league owed up to their mistake and apologised for the arrangements as Indian cricketers decided to pull off from the series.

"But maybe in the process, we ended up hurting the feelings of many and stirring emotions. More than that, we unintentionally caused discomfort to our Indian Cricket Legends, who have brought so much glory to the country, and we ended up affecting the brands who supported us purely out of love for the game. Hence, we have decided to call off the India vs Pakistan match. We sincerely apologise again for hurting the sentiments and hope people will understand that all we ever wanted was to bring a few happy moments to the fans," WCL added to their statement.

Cricketers, Sponsor Withdraw From The Fixture

The organizers' contrition came after significant resistance materialized. Earlier reports indicated that prominent Indian players like Suresh Raina and Shikhar Dhawan had informed organizers they would not play against Pakistan. Dhawan made his stance unequivocally public on X, sharing an email he sent to WCL on May 11th stating his refusal based on the "current geo-political situation."

Dhawan's post stated, "Jo kadam 11 May ko liya, uspe aaj bhi waise hi khada hoon. Mera desh mere liye sab kuch hai, aur desh se badhkar kuch nahi hota." (I stand by the decision I took on May 11. My country is everything for me and nothing is bigger than the country). 

Travel-tech giant EaseMyTrip, a major WCL sponsor, issued a forceful statement clarifying its position. Despite having a 5-year sponsorship agreement, the company declared it "will not be associated with or participate in any WCL match involving Pakistan." They reiterated this was a "matter of principle" communicated "unambiguously" from the outset.