'Not right to compare match to battlefield': Congress on PM Modi's ‘Op Sindoor’ Asia Cup post

After India beat Pakistan by five wickets in the Asia Cup final at the Dubai International Stadium on Sunday, PM Modi posted on X to congratulate the team and compared the match to Operation Sindoor.

"Operation Sindoor on the games field. Outcome is the same -- India wins! Congrats to our cricketers," he said.

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Congress leader Pawan Khera reshared the Prime Minister's post on X and said, "Prime Minister ji, first of all, it is not right to compare a cricket match to a battlefield."

"Second, if you have made the comparison anyway, then you need to learn from the Indian team that when you are close to victory, good captains do not ceasefire on the orders of any third umpire," he added.

The mood between team India and Pakistan was evidently tense as the Asia Cup matches took place against the backdrop of the border tensions following the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack that left 26 people dead.

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The Indian players had also refused to shake hands with their Pakistani opponents during any of the match. Following their final victory as well, the Suryakumar Yadav-led team did not accept the Asia Cup trophy from the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Mohsin Naqvi.

Naqvi had previously registered a complaint with the International Cricket Council (ICC) over team India's behaviour after the handshake snub.

He had also shared objectionable posts on social media, showing Pakistan's claims of downing Indian fighter jets in the conflict after Operation Sindoor, a claim that Islamabad has presented no proof for.

Earlier, Congress MP Shashi Tharoor had taken to X to congratulate team India and extended a 'salute' to coach Gautam Gambhir.

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“As we rejoice at the thrilling victory in the #AsiaCup final last night, let us also pay tribute to the oft-maligned coach, @GautamGambhir and the selectors, who picked the perfect team for the tournament. They are always the first to be blamed when things go wrong, But let’s salute them for getting pretty much everything right this time,” Tharoor wrote on X.

Meanwhile, Suryakumar Yadav hailed PM Modi's 'Operation Sindoor' post for India's Asia Cup win, saying that it felt good as the nation's leader himself "bats on the front foot".

He further said, "...it felt like he took the strike and scored runs. It was great to see, and when the sir is standing in front, then definitely the players will play freely."

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