New Delhi: That Pakistanis are sore losers, be it in sports or war, there is no doubt. However, the recent misbehaviour by a Pakistani U-16 contestant at the Junior Davis Cup in Shymkent, Kazakhstan, has startled social media users, with many of them calling for a ban on all sporting activity between the two nations.
The incident happened after India edged past bitter rivals Pakistan on May 24. India took a comprehensive 2-0 lead after Prakaash Sarran and Tavish Pahwa won their singles matches in the super tie-break.
Three days after the match, a video from the game went viral online, sparking a massive controversy. The video clip shows a Pakistani player shaking hands aggressively with an Indian player following the loss. Frustrated by the defeat, the Pakistani U16 player took a swipe at the Indian player after failing to do the post-match handshake properly.
He repeated the action, but aggressively, before abruptly shaking off the Indian player’s hand in a disrespectful manner. Meanwhile, the Indian player acted in a mature way and chose to remain calm, even in that tense situation.
The unsporting behaviour of the player is clearly a fallout of the outcome of Operation Sindoor that India launched on May 7 against nine terror facilities in Pakistan and Pakistan-Occupied Jammu and Kashmir in response to the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack that left 26 people, mostly tourists from across the country, dead.
This strike by India killed over 100 terrorists. Pakistan, however, took it upon itself to retaliate. It launched attacks by drones and missiles on Indian military and civilian targets that were unsuccessful. Finally, India carried out major missile strikes on several air bases in Pakistan, causing considerable damage.
Pakistan finally called for a ceasefire on May 10 and India agreed to cessation of firing so long as the other side doesn’t do anything to escalate the situation.
