Former Pakistan cricketer Salman Butt has challenged India to avoid playing any matches against Pakistan in ICC tournaments. Butt launched a strong criticism of the Indian Cricket Team following the cancellation of the India Champions vs Pakistan Champions match in the ongoing World Championship of Legends (WCL) 2025. The highly anticipated clash, set for July 20 at Edgbaston, Birmingham, was called off by the organisers after intense backlash from Indian fans.
Additionally, several prominent Indian players—including Yuvraj Singh, Harbhajan Singh, Suresh Raina, Shikhar Dhawan, Irfan Pathan, and Yusuf Pathan—refused to participate against the Pakistan Champions in the tournament.
ICC tournament: Salman Butt Criticizes India Following Cancellation of India Champions vs Pakistan Champions Match
ICC tournament: Former Pakistan captain Salman Butt took to his YouTube channel to strongly criticize India after they declined to face Pakistan Champions in the tournament. Butt openly challenged India, urging them not to compete against Pakistan in any event or tournament.
“The entire world is talking about this — what message are they sending to cricket and to the fans? What are they trying to prove? If that’s the case, then don’t participate in the World Cup… don’t face us in any ICC tournament,” he stated.
He further added, “Let this be a promise. We understand that everything has its context, but now that things are interconnected, don’t play against us at any level or in any tournament — not even the Olympics. Please follow through on that. I’d be interested to see how far their nationalism goes when the stakes are this high.”
Following the Pahalgam terror attack in April, fans have strongly called for no cricket matches against Pakistan. Currently, India does not engage in bilateral cricket with Pakistan; the two teams only compete against each other in ICC tournament events or Asia Cup tournaments. The last bilateral series between them took place in 2012/13.
Meanwhile, the India Champions will open their WCL 2025 campaign against the South Africa Champions on July 22 at the County Ground in Northampton. ICC tournament, The Pakistan Champions will also face the South Africa Champions in their next match on July 25.
The WCL 2025 features former players from six countries: Australia Champions, South Africa Champions, England Champions, West Indies Champions, India Champions, and Pakistan Champions.
