India, Sept. 14 -- Amid the ongoing row over Sunday's India versus Pakistan cricket match in the Asia Cup, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Member of Parliament (MP) and former sports minister Anurag Thakur clarified that while India may face Pakistan in multinational tournaments, India's stand on bilateral cricket ties remains unchanged.

Thakur while speaking in Pune on Saturday said that India's participation in such matches is a "compulsion" driven by tournament rules, not a shift in its diplomatic and national policies.

"When multinational tournaments are organised by Asian Cricket Council (ACC) or International Cricket Council (ICC), it becomes a compulsion, a necessity for nations to participate. If they don't do that, they will be el...