Ramiz Raja, the veteran Pakistan commentator, has said that he expects India and Pakistan to play a bilateral series for the betterment of cricket. Since January 2013, India and Pakistan have not been involved in bilateral series and meet each other only in ICC events and Asia Cup.
The relationship between the neighbouring countries has turned bitter in recent years, which have not given the opportunity to the fans to witness one of the greatest rivalries in cricket history.
Ramiz Raja Hopes Of Future Bilateral Series Between India And Pakistan
The possibility of a future series involving the two is decreasing daily, but former Pakistan international Ramiz Raja who was also the chief executive of PCB when India toured Pakistan in 2004, said that Pakistan is almost ready to host India again.
He remembered that after receiving the green signal from the Indian Government, PCB changed their initial plan to have separate fan stands, resulting in fans of both countries watching the match together. It was a huge success as the series turned out to be an iconic one.
“I just wish that such an event (Indian cricket team tour of Pakistan 2004) can take place again. Pakistan has a different viewpoint regarding an Indian series. So, if that topic comes up for discussion, I think Pakistan would be 70-80% absolutely ready to host a series against India,” said Ramiz Raja.
India and Pakistan are arch-rivals on the field because of the political tensions between the two nations. The two teams have not locked horns since 2012 in a bilateral series and they collide against each other only in multi-nation tournaments. The last time these two teams faced off each other was in the 2019 World Cup when India continued their winning streak and beat their arch-rivals by 89 runs.
Ramiz Raja: Pakistan Not 100 Percent Ready
Ramiz Raja feels that the final call depends on the Indian Government, so Pakistan is still not 100% ready to host India. Pakistan Prime Minister former cricket captain Imran Khan may pull it off, but the political situation, the response of common people, and government intervention will have the final word.
“From a cricketing point of view, I am 100% sure that he won’t have a problem. Obviously, he’ll have to look at the political situation as well, how the common people respond if India is invited or if Pakistan is invited with such a series,” he added.
The India-Pakistan rivalry is an age-old rivalry and games between the two sides are always highly anticipated by fans from both countries. However, due to the unfortunate political situation, the two teams haven’t played a bilateral series since 2012-13. Pakistan and India’s last bilateral ties at either of the two neighbouring countries were 2 T20Is and 3 ODIs in India way back in 2012.