The World Championship of Legends (WCL) 2025 semi-final match between Pakistan and India is again under cloud. According to a news agency report by IANS, India's squad, with skipper Yuvraj Singh at the helm, has declined to participate in the match against the Pakistan Champions team, captained by Shahid Afridi. The match is supposed to take place on Thursday, July 31, at Birmingham's Edgbaston Cricket Ground. This move jeopardises the very much anticipated semi-final in a serious manner. The organisers are still waiting for a final word, but in case India officially withdraws, Pakistan could be directly qualified for the final. The WCL is a privately operated event, and coincidentally, Indian stakeholders own it, with Bollywood star Ajay Devgn as co-owner and founder Harshit Tomar. Also Read | India Reach WCL 2025 Semis After Binny, Pathan Heroics Earlier League Stage Encounter Was Also Abandoned This is the second time that the India-Pakistan match has been marred. Earlier in the tournament, the group-stage match that was to be played on July 19 was cancelled following a storm of protests over the political tension between the two nations. The teams were both awarded a point, but the ruling caused further agitations, with Pakistan protesting that they should have been given full points. The tension deepened further when EaseMyTrip, the tournament sponsor, withdrew from the semi-final game, declaring on social media that they would not sponsor any match against Pakistan. The action added pressure and posed new questions regarding whether the match should be held at all. India Scrambled Through, Pakistan Dominated Pakistan, under the leadership of Shahid Afridi, enjoyed a good league campaign. They won each of their four matches and reached the knock-out stage unbeaten. India did not fare so well in the group stage. They won a single match out of four but were able to reach the semi-final due to their convincing win over West Indies. That victory provided them a huge boost in Net Run Rate (NRR), which enabled them to surpass England for the fourth semi-final position. In case India formally declines to occupy the field, the tournament organizers will have to consider if Pakistan is to be granted an automatic place in the final. The second semi-final between South Africa and Australia will be scheduled later on the same day. Also Read | Watch: Hastings’ 13-Extra Over Hands Pakistan Champions a 10-Wicket Win Bigger Picture Raises Questions The row is at a time when the boards of cricket for India and Pakistan have been said to have agreed to play against one another in the 2025 Asia Cup, where the teams could face each other up to three times. The move has also attracted criticism from different groups following the latest terror attacks at Pahalgam and Operation Sindoor. Big names in the Indian team such as Shikhar Dhawan, Suresh Raina, Irfan Pathan, and Yusuf Pathan have till now kept quiet about the matter. The next few hours will tell about how things go and if fans will be able to witness the epic India vs Pakistan encounter or if politics again eclipses cricket.