New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday conveyed his best wishes to the leaders of the SAARC Nations to wish their teams’ good luck for the ICC World Cup 2015 that starts from Saturday. 5 SAARC Nations are playing & are excited about the World Cup. Am sure WC will celebrate sportsman spirit & will be a treat for sports lovers, Modi said in a series of tweets.
Modi spoke to Pakistan PM Nawaz Sharif, Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani, Sri Lanka President Maithripala Sirisena and Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina and wished them good luck saying cricket promotes goodwill among these nations and hopes the players from SAARC will bring glory to the region.
Modi posted 15 tweets for the 15-member Indian squad, who will open their World Cup title defence against arch-rivals Pakistan on February 15. The Prime Minister boosted the confidence of each player according to their playing roles in the team.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi called Pakistan premier Nawaz Sharif on Thursday to wish him for the World Cup in Australiaand the two bonded over cricket after months of strained ties. PM Modi tweeted this morning that he had spoken to Sharif and the heads of other SAARC countries whose teams are playing in the World Cup to wish them luck.
PM Modi joked about Nawaz Sharif playing in a warm-up World Cup match in 1987 alongside cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan, who is now Pakistan’s top opposition leader. Sharif reportedly laughed and said, “Kash woh din dobaara aata (I wish those days would come back. After breaking the ice with cricket, the two leaders went on to discuss diplomacy, said sources.
PM Modi reportedly sounded out Nawaz Sharif on India’s initiative to send new Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar on a “SAARC yatra” or tour of South Asian countries, including Pakistan. Sources say Sharif then discussed the possibility of resuming foreign secretary level talks, which were cancelled in August last yearamid a row over the Pakistan envoy’s move to engage with Kashmiri separatists. Ties worsened over a series of ceasefire violations by Pakistan.
India take on Pakistan in its first cricket World Cup match in Adelaide on Sunday. Modi spoke to the Pakistan PM hours after US President Barack Obama had called Sharif. As the World Cup began on Thursday, the Prime Minister had tweeted individual wishes for each member of Team India, including skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni and vice captain Virat Kohli. India had lost their first World Cup warm-up match against Australia but registered a victory against minnows Afghanistan in their next warm-up match.
Bureau Report
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