3 min readKochiFeb 15, 2026 04:59 PM IST Although the India-Pakistan rivalry has been ongoing for decades, it reached a new high following the 2025 Pahalgam attack and the subsequent Operation Sindoor. While real-world conflicts between the two countries have always significantly impacted cricket, the 2025 incidents worsened matters, following which proposed matches between India and Pakistan faced uncertainty until the n-th hour, and Indian players refused to shake hands with their Pakistani counterparts during last year’s Asia Cup. Now, amid strife over Bangladesh being replaced in the tournament by Scotland for refusing to tour India due to safety concerns, India and Pakistan are set to lock horns in a group-stage match at the ongoing ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026. Despite frictions between the two nations, which have been especially intense since the 2008 Mumbai attacks, there have been times when renowned figures from one country heaped praise on those from the other, particularly in the realm of cricket. Among the notable instances is former cricketer and bowling legend Wasim Akram’s commendation of Shah …