'Baseball diplomacy' aims to bring India and Pakistan together

Any sporting rivalry between India and Pakistan is sure to draw the full attention of the two nations, particularly when inside a cricket stadium in Dubai.

The inaugural Baseball United Dubai Showcase, the first professional baseball league in the Middle East and South Asia, plans to do just that by pitting the Mumbai Cobras against the Karachi Monarchs.

The four-team showcase event also includes Dubai and Abu Dhabi, the two other franchises, in the four-game tournament at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium in November after a landmark signing of a 15-year deal between Emirates Cricket Board (ECB) and Baseball United.

Kash Shaikh, chairman and CEO of Baseball United, knows just how much the India-Pakistan rivalry excites people from both countries.

“My dad was born in India and mum in Pakistan. I was born in Texas. I grew up with the understanding of the beauty and the conflict of this region,” Shaikh said.

“In my own small way, I want to bring these people together as the founder of the first ever South Asian fraternity in the United States.

“A big part of my life is breaking down these barriers and now we get to do it with a sport that I’m most passionate about. We call it baseball diplomacy. How can we take this American sport and America’s pastime to use it to unite and inspire people?”

Shaikh had earlier created a piece of history by bringing both India and Pakistan to the inaugural West Asia Cup in Islamabad in January.

“We partnered with the Pakistan Baseball Federation to host this seven-nation baseball event that also included Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Afghanistan and Palestine,” he said.

“It was a ground-breaking event for an Indian national team to play their Pakistan counterpart on Pakistani soil.

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