Sports and politics

The legendary cricketer Sunil Gavaskar's remarks about the signing of Pakistani spinner Abrar Ahmed by an Indian-owned franchise, Sunrisers Leeds, for The Hundred Cricket League in England reek of unsportsmanship. He, in a column for the Indian newspaper Mid-Day, writes: "The fees that they pay to a Pakistani player, who then pays income tax to his government, which buys arms and weapons, indirectly contribute to the deaths of Indian soldiers and civilians." The franchise Sunrisers Leeds is owned by the same group that controls the IPL team Sunrisers Hyderabad and is facing severe backlash on social media after it signed Abrar Ahmed.

He argues a relationship between sports and politics like solving an algebraic sum to find the value of an unknown variable. The algebraic relationship says that if x is equal to y and y is equal to z, then what would be the relationship between x and z? Teachers teach this relationship also as a definition of creativity: if a student solves the relationship between x and z, as Mr Gavaskar did, he is perspicacious and able to solve conundrums through deductive reasoning.

His argument can be dubbed valid but not sound. Eli Burnstein, in his book Dictionary of Fine Distinctions, illustrates the difference between valid and sound arguments. Valid arguments: All humans are green; I am a human; therefore, I am green. Sound arguments: All humans are mortal; I am a human; therefore, I am mortal. The writer concludes: Valid arguments are consistent; sound arguments are consistent and correct.

Valid arguments originate in one's prejudices – emotional, parochial or ideological. Contrarily, sound arguments come from soundness of mind and heart. They are objective, professional and universal ideas. The former are bellicose, while the latter, pacifist. Mr Gavasker's jingoism is palpable when he continues his proselytising: "There's still time to undo the wrong and hopefully wiser counsels prevail." However, a statement released by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) said, "All eight teams commit to selection being based solely on cricketing performance, availability, and the needs of each team."

Accepted that sportspersons are also nationals of their countries. It's but natural if they exude patriotism. But they are the world assets, ethically bound to quell the tensions between nations, not to fan the fires of hatred. "The Hundred was established to reach new audiences, grow the game of cricket and ensure that everyone - regardless of their ethnicity, gender, faith, nationality or other - can feel they belong in our sport," the ECB clarified.

If a Pakistani player's money can be used against India, will the capital generated by the Indian franchise, which signs the Pakistani player, not be used in the border skirmishes against Pakistan? A player's earnings are negligible as compared with the buyer's generated huge revenues. By Gavaskarian logic, we, too, must not subscribe to Indian channels on social media. The Bollywood content must not be downloaded, viewed or reviewed. Students must stop watching Indian YouTubers. Jingoism reciprocated by jingoism.

The Gavaskarian logic is a logical fallacy, hinging upon Moditva, which also made inroads into sports when an IPL team owned by SRK signed a Bangladeshi player. It creates a false binary – binaries always stem from extremism and jingoism. Mr Gavaskar has misused his legendary status to blur the line between sports and politics. When Indian players play county cricket in England, it means they have forgotten their county's colonial past.

Congrats to Mr Sunil Gavaskar that he discovered how selecting a Pakistani player is tantamount to treason. Had these remarks drooled from an RSS adherent, the jingoism would not have been unexpected. If sportsmen also jump on the jingoistic bandwagon, all the doors of rapprochement will get closed. Has cutting the sports ties between countries ever solved the border conflicts? Rather, the platform of sports has been used in the past to ease the border tensions. President General Zia-ul-Haq, General Pervez Musharraf and Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gillani visited India under the pretext of watching cricket matches but, in actuality, to check the war pitch.