New Delhi: In the World Championship of Legends (WCL) India Champions forfeited their opening match against Pakistan Champions after the Pahalgam terror attack. In the semi-finals too India Champions gave a walkover allowing Pakistan Champions to reach the finals directly. In the final Pakistan faced South Africa Champions but lost. Why did it happen? A veteran player of Team India who was at the centre of this decision revealed to NDTV on the condition of anonymity – “The decision was to refuse to play against Shahid Afridi because of the statements he had made and continues to make.” When and against whom? The question was raised whether this decision could have been changed if Shahid Afridi had not been a part of the Pakistan Champions team. To this the veteran player said “This is an afterthought. We were aware of the match against Pakistan but were not sure about the composition of the team.” Who said what? Shahid Afridi had said We are here to play cricket and I always say that cricket should be kept away from politics. Cricket should move forward. A player should behave like a good ambassador and not become a cause of embarrassment for his country. Who were involved? India Champions included players like Shikhar Dhawan Suresh Raina Irfan Pathan and Yusuf Pathan who refused to play against Pakistan Champions. Despite withdrawing from the match in the group stage both teams got one point each. This point proved to be decisive as India Champions made it to the semi-finals by chasing a brilliant target in the last group match against West Indies Champions. What was the result? After this boycott by India the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) announced a ban on the countrys participation in the WCL. This decision came after criticism from the PCB in which they accused the WCL of hypocrisy and bias.