NEW DELHI: India captain
Rohit Sharma
expresses openness to playing Test matches against Pakistan at neutral venues, emphasizing the potential for a thrilling contest against their formidable bowling lineup.
Bilateral cricket between India and Pakistan has been on hold since the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks, with encounters limited to ICC events. Their latest meeting occurred during the previous year's ODI World Cup hosted in India.
"I totally believe that they are a good team, superb bowling line-up, good contest, if we play overseas.
The last Test was played way back in 2007-08," Rohit said on 'Club Prairie Fire', a YouTube show hosted by former Australian keeper-batter
Adam Gilchrist
and former England skipper Michael Vaughan.
"Yeah, I would love to (play against Pakistan), it would be a great contest between two sides. We play them in ICC trophies, pure cricket I am looking at, great contest, so why not?" he said when asked whether Indo-Pak Tests are possible at a neutral venue like England or Australia.
Under the leadership of
Shaheen Shah Afridi
, Pakistan's bowling unit, known for its pace, showcases promising talents such as 21-year-old Naseem Shah and Aamer Jamal.
The BCCI has consistently stated that any decision regarding bilateral cricket with Pakistan rests on government approval. However, governmental authorization for cricketing ties with the arch-rivals has not been granted thus far.
In contrast, Pakistan has been actively advocating for bilateral engagements with India, consistently raising the issue at ICC forums whenever the opportunity arises.
Last year, India refused to travel to Pakistan for the Asia Cup, which was eventually conducted in a hybrid model. All of India's scheduled games in Pakistan were relocated to Sri Lanka.
The next year's Champions Trophy will be another bone of contention between the two countries as the tournament is set to be held in Pakistan, which has declared that it won't agree to any change of venue to accommodate India.
The ICC, on its part, has stated that it won't force any member nation to disregard government advisory.
"...ICC Board's position remains that it doesn't expect its members to go against any policy/instructions issued by its own government," an ICC official had stated recently.
(With PTI inputs)
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