Pakistan to Play T20 World Cup 2026, Boycott Match Against India
In a significant and unprecedented decision, Pakistan on Sunday announced that it will participate in the ICC T20 World Cup 2026 but will boycott its scheduled match against arch-rival India.The decision was taken after a high-level meeting between Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman Mohsin Naqvi. According to an official statement shared by the Government of Pakistan on X, approval has been granted for the national team to take part in the tournament; however, Pakistan will not take the field in the match scheduled against India on February 15, 2026.Government sources told Geo News that the move is intended as a show of solidarity with Bangladesh. The sources said multiple factors influenced the decision, particularly what Pakistan perceives as the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) biased approach towards Bangladesh. As a form of protest, the Pakistan team was instructed not to play the match against India.The sources further alleged that decisions taken under ICC chairman Jay Shah have compromised the council’s neutrality, effectively turning it into an extension of the Indian cricket board. They added that such actions have undermined principles of fairness and equality, with different standards being applied to different member nations.Pakistan T20 captain Salman Ali Agha has backed the government’s decision. Speaking at a post-match press conference after Pakistan defeated Australia in the third and final T20I at Lahore’s Gaddafi Stadium, completing a clean sweep of the series, Agha said: “We are going to the World Cup. We will do whatever our cricket board instructs us to do.” He clarified that the decision to boycott the match against India was taken by the government.The development follows the ICC’s rejection of a request by the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) to shift its World Cup matches to a venue outside India.
The BCB had made the request after Bangladeshi pacer Mustafizur Rahman was removed from the Indian Premier League on the Indian board’s instructions, triggering widespread backlash in Bangladesh.Despite the request, the ICC replaced Bangladesh with Scotland in the tournament, citing the difficulty of revising the schedule so close to the World Cup’s start on February 7.Under an existing arrangement between Pakistan and India, the two teams play ICC events at neutral venues. For the T20 World Cup 2026, Pakistan’s matches are scheduled to be held in Sri Lanka.
