IND vs PAK: Harbhajan Singh, Shikhar Dhawan among stars who pull out of WCL tie-OxBig News Network

Former India spinner Harbhajan Singh, opener Shikhar Dhawan, Suresh Raina and all-rounder Yusuf Pathan have pulled out of the World Championship of Legends (WCL) 2025 exhibition match between India and Pakistan. India Today has learnt that all four former India stars pulled out of the game, set to take place on Sunday, July 20, late in the evening on Saturday. It is not yet known if they pulled out of the game after facing social media backlash over the event.

This was supposed to be the first cricketing event between India and Pakistan since Operation Sindoor. Sources have told India Today that the match, which was set to be held at Edgbaston, might be cancelled as well. However, the final call on the matter is yet to be taken.

While Harbhajan, Shikhar, Raina and Pathan haven’t made the decision official, it is believed that the Pahalgam attack and the aftermath of it had a bearing in their decision. It is believed that Irfan Pathan is also likely to pull out of the match, but India Today could not independently confirm.

WCL 2025 Squads

India Champions Squad: Yuvraj Singh, Shikhar Dhawan, Harbhajan Singh, Suresh Raina, Irfan Pathan, Yusuf Pathan, Robin Uthappa, Ambati Rayudu, Piyush Chawla, Stuart Binny, Varun Aaron, Vinay Kumar, Abhimanyu Mithun, Siddarth Kaul, Gurkeerat Singh Maan.

Pakistan Champions Squad: Mohammad Hafeez (c), Kamran Akmal (wk), Shoaib Malik, Sharjeel Khan, Asif Ali, Umar Amin, Aamer Yamin, Wahab Riaz, Sohail Khan, Sohail Tanvir, Rumman Raees, Shahid Afridi, Imad Wasim, Fawad Alam, Sohaib Maqsood, Sarfaraz Ahmed, Younis Khan, Misbah-ul-Haq, Abdul Razzaq, Saeed Ajmal.

The India vs Pakistan match is set to feature Shahid Afridi from the Pakistan side, who in the recent past has made several controversial statements about India. Afridi has been criticised several times on social media for hate-mongering against his neighbouring nation.

Former Pakistan cricketer Danish Kaneria had ripped into Shahid Afridi for his bizarre claims against India in the aftermath of the Pahalgam terror attack. On April 28, Kaneria criticised Afridi for his statements on the incident, where the former captain had claimed that India facilitated the attack on themselves and then blamed Pakistan.

Shahid Afridi’s statement had gone viral on social media, where he made weird remarks on the terror attack that claimed 26 innocent lives.

“The terrorists continued to kill people in Pahalgam for an hour, and not a single Indian soldier out of 8 lakh showed up. But when they did, they blamed Pakistan,” Afridi told local reporters in Pakistan.

“India carries out terrorism itself, kills its own people, and then puts the blame on Pakistan,” he said.

India vs Pakistan post Operation Sindoor

This is not the first time that India and Pakistan have competed against each other in the aftermath of Operation Sindoor. Controversy had erupted in the Junior Davis Cup on May 24, after India had beaten Pakistan in the U16 tournament.

In a viral clip, a Pakistan player was seen shaking hands in an unsportsmanlike manner with an Indian player. After Pakistan’s loss in the tie, the Pakistani U16 player in question appeared to take a swipe at the Indian junior star. Initially failing to connect in the handshake, he repeated the action – this time making contact – only to abruptly shake off the Indian player’s hand in a disrespectful gesture.

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