Recent diplomatic talks between India’s External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar and Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, Muhammad Ishaq Dar, were about reviving cricket ties between the two nations.
These talks, which took place during the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit, mark the first direct interaction between the foreign ministers of the two countries since 2015.
Held over two informal meetings within 24 hours — during a dinner hosted by Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and a subsequent lunch after the SCO plenary session — these conversations are said to have touched on cricket.
According to sources familiar with the discussions, Jaishankar, who is a known cricket enthusiast, discussed the possibility of resuming some form of cricketing engagement with Dar. That conversation also included Pakistan’s Interior Minister and Chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), Syed Mohsin Raza Naqvi.
Scheduled from February 19 to March 9, the Champions Trophy will be hosted by Pakistan and there has already been significant speculation over whether the Indian team will play on Pakistani soil after a long 18-year gap.
Clarity regarding the tournament’s hosting arrangements is expected in November, just ahead of Jay Shah’s transition to ICC Chairman on December 1.
