Former Indian opener Shikhar Dhawan opened up on why he had decided not to play against Pakistan Legends in the World Championship of Legends (WCL) 2025. The India Legends decided to forfeit the game against Pakistan Legends twice in the tournament, first in the league phase and then in the semifinals. The India Legends team took such a stand to show their solidarity with the martyrs of the terrible attack on tourists in Pahalgam earlier this year.
Speaking on the `Figuring it Out with Raj Shamani` podcast, Shikhar Dhawan opened up on his emotions about the terrorist attack in Pahalgam and how hurt he was by the loss of innocent lives. He claimed that it didn`t feel right for him to play against Pakistan when cross-border terrorism was still happening. Here`s what he had to say:
“I had already told the organisers two months before the event that I wouldn’t play against Pakistan. Because for me, I feel that whatever happened—the terror attacks, Operation Sindoor, and the war—was still very raw, and my soul wasn’t ready to play. So I didn’t play. And that time, I already told them that I didn’t want to play. And even when I went there, I didn’t feel right to play against Pakistan at that moment. And that time, there was a little bit of internal sadness because of how things happened, the way our Indians, our Hindu brothers, were attacked—that was very wrong. So, that hurt remained. That’s why I respected that hurt and I went with that.”
While playing for India, Shikhar Dhawan was a part of several India vs Pakistan encounters and shed light on the kind of atmosphere that is generated in the build-up to the game between the arch-rivals. On this, he added:
“The India-Pakistan atmosphere starts building up two to three days in advance. All the Indian fans will come, the Pakistani fans will come. They’ll gather below the hotel. Drums are playing, they’re dancing, they’re singing, and when you step out for the match, all the fans are there, Indian and Pakistani both, and they are shouting. There is a noise during the match. So, it’s a different, very electrifying energy environment. A different, different atmosphere.”
Dhawan had also scored a stunning hundred against Pakistan in the Asia Cup. Recalling the same, he asserted:
“As a player, the goal is always to perform well. We have to do well against them, we have to win against Pakistan, and it’s essential to make our country win… It’s fun to beat them. That was fun. Like when I scored a century in the Asia Cup, I told everyone there that I would tell my grandparents that I beat Pakistan. It’s a different level of competition and a different energy altogether.”
The Indian team recently took a similar stand in the Asia Cup 2025 as they refused to shake hands with their Pakistani counterparts.