Lahore: The Pakistan government has approved the Pakistan cricket team’s participation in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026. However, the government has attached a crucial condition to this approval. According to the government order, the Pakistan cricket team will not participate in the match against India scheduled for February 15th. This means that while Pakistan will participate in the tournament, they will be absent from the highly anticipated India-Pakistan match.
What did the Pakistan government say?
This announcement was made via a tweet from the official X handle of the Government of Pakistan. It stated, “The Government of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan approves the participation of the Pakistan cricket team in the ICC T20 World Cup 2026; however, the Pakistan cricket team will not play the match scheduled against India on February 15, 2026.”
This move is believed to be part of a strategy to inflict financial damage on the International Cricket Council (ICC). Recently, Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman Mohsin Naqvi accused the ICC of adopting a double standard and said that the organization was working under the influence of the BCCI.
What is the ICC reaction?
According to sources, the ICC has not yet received any written communication from the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) regarding this matter. The ICC will only decide on any action or sanctions after the PCB officially informs the ICC.
This announcement came just minutes after a crucial meeting between Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Mohsin Naqvi. Naqvi had previously met with the Prime Minister and stated that a final decision on Pakistan’s participation in the T20 World Cup would be made by January 30th or February 2nd. It is worth noting that Pakistan began reconsidering its participation in this 20-team mega-tournament after the ICC announced last month that Scotland would replace Bangladesh. This decision was made after Bangladesh refused to tour India.
What is the impact of this decision?
The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) took this step after the IPL franchise Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), acting on instructions from the BCCI, released veteran fast bowler Mustafizur Rahman from their team. Several rounds of negotiations followed between the two parties, but no resolution was reached. Ultimately, the ICC rejected Bangladesh’s appeal, refused to make any changes to the tournament schedule, and issued a 24-hour ultimatum.
This decision has created uncertainty surrounding one of the biggest and most high-voltage matches of the T20 World Cup. It is believed that the ICC will now have to make a further decision on this matter, as the India-Pakistan match is considered crucial in terms of the tournament schedule and group standings. Currently, there has been no official response from either the ICC or the BCCI regarding this entire issue.
