It’s a question which a lot of people have been asking since last Sunday. In fact we were planning to ask a question after last night’s debacle, but we will now reserve one on India’s World Cup outing after our last encounter. Meanwhile, do read Dr Bhaskar Das’s response to our question in the November 1 edition of Das ka Dum. Here goes…
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Q. Given all the negativity and hysteria that happened post the India-Pak match of last Sunday, would you say that India should stop playing Pakistan? Or play so very often that winning or losing one game won’t really matter?
A. Your question reminds me of a famous quote of well-known basketball coach
John Wooden – “Sports don’t build character, they reveal it.” This quote is just to set a macro context to your micro question. I am not a policymaker by any stretch of imagination. So, I can’t participate in any strategic decision that falls within the ambit of the government or BCCI. But I strongly believe that a game is a game and it should be played in the true spirit. One of the important principles of a game is participation and celebrating excellence. If any other consideration impinge in that spirit, benign or otherwise, the result could be different as there would be only vanquished and no winner.