India to face Pakistan in WCL semi-final despite earlier refusal to play

In a dramatic turn of events, the Indian Legends, who had earlier refused to play against Pakistan in the group stage of the World Championship of Legends 2025, are now set to face their arch-rivals in the semi-finals.

During Tuesday’s crucial group-stage clash held in England, India secured a semi-final spot by defeating the West Indies Legends.

Batting first, the West Indies posted a total of 145 runs in their allotted 20 overs. However, for India to qualify based on net run rate, they needed to chase the target within 14.1 overs.

Thanks to a blistering half-century by Stuart Binny, the Indian Legends completed the chase in just 13.2 overs with five wickets down, becoming the fourth and final team to book a place in the semi-finals.

“Match was cancelled due to one bad egg:” Shahid Afridi on WCL Pakistan vs India clash

Earlier the same day, the Pakistan Legends crushed Australia by 10 wickets, finishing at the top of the points table. Australia and South Africa had already sealed their spots in the knockouts ahead of the day’s matches.

The semi-final lineup is now confirmed. Pakistan will face India on July 31, and South Africa will play Australia on the same day.

Meanwhile, controversy continues to shadow the tournament. One of the Indian sponsors has pulled out of the semi-final stage, citing "national conscience" as the reason for the withdrawal.

Read more: WCL match between Pakistan and India called off after Indian players object to Shahid Afridi's participation

It’s worth noting that India had refused to play their scheduled group match against Pakistan earlier in the tournament. Reports suggested that Indian players, including Shikhar Dhawan, Yusuf Pathan, Irfan Pathan, and Harbhajan Singh, opposed participating in the match unless Shahid Afridi was excluded from Pakistan’s playing XI.

The match was eventually called off, and the tournament organisers issued a statement expressing regret over the situation.