KATUNAYAKE: Blind women from India and Pakistan brushed aside political tensions on Sunday, shaking hands in neutral Sri Lanka at a cricket tournament for the visually impaired. At what organizers describe as the world&rsquo;s first blind women&rsquo;s T20 tournament, players from the two South Asian neighbours showed they had sporting vision even if they lacked sight -- unlike their regular national teams.&nbsp; Tensions off and on the field have been high since a deadly military clash between the nuclear-armed neighbours in May. India&rsquo;s men refused to shake hands with their Pakistani opponents at the Asia Cup in September, since then neither side has shown signs of making up. That animosity spread to the women&#39;s sides who declined any greeting at the recent T20 World Cup and also to Sunday&#39;s men&#39;s Rising Stars Asia Cup tie in Doha. India&rsquo;s blind players were expected to mirror the conduct of their sighted teams when there was no handshake after the toss, but at the end of the match both sides warmly greeted each other. The two sides, who travelled to the venue together in the same bus, not only shook hands but also exchanged generous compliments. India won by eight wickets in just 10.2 overs after Pakistan were restricted to 135 for eight in their 20 overs at the Free Trade Zone grounds in Katunayake, 30 kilometres (18 miles) north of Colombo. Pakistan skipper Nimra Rafique congratulated India on their comprehensive victory, while her Indian counterpart TC Deepika said Pakistan had played well. The teams applauded one another loudly but neither set of players was permitted to talk to the press. Biggest opportunityThere were hardly any spectators but the match was shown live on Sri Lanka&#39;s national television, Rupavahini. Blind Sri Lankan officials hosting the tournament &ldquo;watched&rdquo; the match on YouTube by listening to the commentary. Indian team manager Shika Shetty told AFP before the match that the tournament was opening up opportunities for more women. &ldquo;This is the first-ever World Cup for blind women... I think this is one of the biggest opportunities for our entire visually impaired girls,&rdquo; said Shetty, who is not blind. &ldquo;Maybe many girls with disabilities will come out from their villages. Maybe they will come for studies, maybe they will come for the sport. So it is helpful for other girls too.&quot; Blind cricket relies on a sharp ear, as players must detect a white plastic ball -- the size of a tennis ball -- filled with ball bearings that rattle as it moves. Pakistan coach Tahir Mehmood Butt, also speaking before the game, said the launch of women&#39;s blind cricket had created new opportunities for young players in Pakistan. &ldquo;For the totally blind, if they have good hearing, they can become good cricketers,&rdquo; Tahir told AFP. Each team must field at least four completely blind players, three who can see up to two metres, and four partially sighted players able to see up to about six metres. Totally blind batters may have a partially sighted runner. Bowling is underarm, unlike in the traditional game. Four other nations - Australia, Nepal, Sri Lanka and the US -- are competing in the tournament which began in India and moved to Sri Lanka for the final stages. The final is scheduled for next Sunday in Colombo.

Pakistan's captain Nimra Rafique (3R) shakes hands with India's players

Cricket

Blind women cricketers from India and Pakistan set aside political tensions at the world’s first blind women’s T20 tournament in Sri Lanka, promoting sportsmanship and opening new opportunities for visually impaired girls across South Asia.

Blind women cricketers from India, Pakistan show spirit with handshakes

Syed Ahmed Raza

ISLAMABAD: Tensions between Pakistan and Afghanistan have escalated following a recent surge in cross-border terrorist attacks from Afghanistan.&nbsp;Islamabad accuses the Taliban-led government in Kabul of sheltering banned Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) terrorists and allowing them to operate freely in Afghanistan &mdash; a charge Afghan authorities deny.&nbsp;During a recent official visit to India, Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi reiterated Kabul&#39;s denial of TTP presence in the country. His statement came just days after TTP terrorists ambushed a Pakistani military convoy in the northwestern Orakzai District, killing 11 soldiers, including a lieutenant colonel and a major.&nbsp;Soon after, the TTP launched coordinated cross-border assaults on Pakistani military posts, exposing what security analysts describe as a growing nexus between the Afghan Taliban and the TTP.&nbsp;In response, Pakistani forces carried out precision strikes targeting TTP and Daesh hideouts inside Afghanistan, reportedly eliminating more than 200 terrorists.&nbsp;Pakistan&rsquo;s consistent goodwill toward KabulPakistan has long supported the Taliban-led government in Kabul. Islamabad was one of the few countries to keep its embassy open after the Taliban&rsquo;s takeover in August 2021 and has consistently advocated for unfreezing Afghanistan&rsquo;s $9 billion in foreign assets.&nbsp;Through regional forums such as the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) and the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO), Pakistan repeatedly urged the international community to extend humanitarian and economic support to Afghanistan.&nbsp;Islamabad&rsquo;s approach has long been guided by the belief that a stable and friendly government in Kabul is essential for regional peace and the security of Pakistan&rsquo;s western borders.&nbsp;In this spirit, Pakistan even extended an invitation to Afghanistan to join the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), envisioning trilateral cooperation with China to bring investment, energy connectivity, and infrastructure development to the war-torn country.&nbsp;Goodwill met with denial and hostilityHowever, officials and observers say this goodwill has largely been met with mistrust and denial from the Afghan side.&nbsp;&ldquo;All Pakistan expected in return was for the Afghan Taliban to take concrete action against TTP terrorists using Afghan territory to attack Pakistan,&rdquo; said retired Air Commodore Khalid Chishti. &ldquo;But instead of cooperation, we are witnessing denial, deflection, and, increasingly, alignment with India.&rdquo;&nbsp;Chishti said the Afghan Taliban&rsquo;s outright denial of TTP&#39;s presence &ldquo;amounts to making fun of themselves.&rdquo;&nbsp;&ldquo;The whole world knows the TTP is operating from Afghanistan,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;Either the Taliban are part of it or they are helpless. When they claim control over all of Afghanistan yet deny cross-border attacks, it shows either a lack of capacity or will.&rdquo;&nbsp;He added that Afghan Foreign Minister Muttaqi &ldquo;spent much of his youth in Pakistan and served as the Taliban&rsquo;s information minister during their first regime from 1996 to 2001,&rdquo; describing him as &ldquo;someone for whom Pakistan was like a second home.&rdquo;&nbsp;&ldquo;This is the same individual once listed as a terrorist&mdash;whom India accused of hijacking its plane&mdash;but now welcomed in New Delhi simply because he shares an anti-Pakistan stance,&rdquo; Chishti noted.&nbsp;India&rsquo;s expanding footprint in AfghanistanThe retired air commodore said India has long used Afghanistan as a strategic pressure point against Pakistan, pouring billions into infrastructure, education, and development projects to gain political leverage.&nbsp;&ldquo;India cannot compete with Pakistan on the eastern border,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;So, it funds proxies across the western border&mdash;buying loyalty, outsourcing terrorism, and using the TTP as a rented force.&rdquo;&nbsp;Chishti also cited a 2016 statement attributed to India&rsquo;s current National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, in which he reportedly said India would use the Taliban &ldquo;the way we want,&rdquo; adding, &ldquo;They are mercenaries. India is a much bigger economy. We will inject more funds, and they will be on our side.&rdquo;&nbsp;He said the statement reflects India&rsquo;s long-standing intent to exploit instability in Afghanistan to its advantage.&nbsp;During the US presence in Afghanistan, Chishti noted, &ldquo;around 2,700 contractors were told to pay protection money to the Taliban&mdash;nearly $47 million per week&mdash;which shows how the group learned to monetize conflict and power.&rdquo;&nbsp;Terrorism data paints grim pictureAccording to data from the Islamabad-based Pakistan Institute for Peace Studies (PIPS), terrorist attacks in Pakistan surged from 89 in 2021 to 262 in 2022, 306 in 2023, and 521 in 2024. In the first 10 months of 2025 alone, 585 attacks have been recorded&mdash;the highest escalation in recent years.&nbsp;The situation worsened during Pakistan&rsquo;s brief conflict with India in May 2025, when a 40-member TTP group&mdash;including the son of a Taliban official&mdash;reportedly attempted to open a western front against Pakistan. Analysts say this highlights a dangerous convergence between anti-Pakistan groups operating from Afghan territory and external actors seeking to destabilize the region.&nbsp;The latest escalation came after the October 8 attacks in Orakzai and Dera Ismail Khan, which killed 18 security personnel. Pakistan&rsquo;s retaliatory strikes were followed by a terrorist assault on the DI Khan Police Training School by a group linked to the Taliban, killing seven policemen and injuring several others.&nbsp;According to the Islamabad-based Center for Research and Security Studies (CRSS), Pakistan witnessed a 46% rise in violence in the third quarter of 2025, with at least 901 fatalities and 599 injuries in 329 incidents of terrorism and counterterror operations.&nbsp;A looming questionChishti said the growing threat underscores the need for a &ldquo;clearer regional strategy.&rdquo;&nbsp;&ldquo;We must protect our borders and people,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;But continued tolerance for terrorist sanctuaries in Afghanistan endangers not just Pakistan&rsquo;s security&mdash;it threatens regional peace and stability as a whole.&rdquo;&nbsp;As Pakistan re-evaluates its policy toward Kabul, one question looms large: Are the Afghan Taliban truly living up to India&rsquo;s expectations&mdash;or merely playing into a dangerous regional game that could consume them next?

Security

Pakistan’s goodwill toward the Afghan Taliban government is straining as TTP attacks surge, fueling suspicions of Indian influence.

Articles tagged with "India Pakistan"

Blind women cricketers from India, Pakistan show spirit with handshakes

TTP resurgence strains Pakistan-Afghanistan ties, fuels suspicions of Indian hand