India, Feb. 17 -- Just two days back, India and Pakistan played out a World Cup game which was marked, again, by a studied lack of handshakes, which is such a traditional and endearing part of all sports. A shake of the hand before and after a sporting contest, in victory or defeat, is a mark of respect for the effort put in by the opponent, but it seems that even basic courtesies can be given the go-by at the altar of political compulsions.

It's against this backdrop that the coming together of a host of retired cricketing luminaries, including iconic former India captains Sunil Gavaskar and Kapil Dev, in a passionate and heartfelt entreaty to the Pakistani authorities to treat World Cup-winning captain Imran Khan with the respect and h...