Pakistan will boycott match against India in T20 World Cup:Pak government clears participation, move perceived as protest to support Bangladesh

Pakistan has decided to boycott the 15 February clash against India in the T20 World Cup. However, it is worth noting that, as per the government clearance, Men in Green will participate in the ICC competition. So far, there is no response from ICC on the latest development. Pakistan confirm participation in T20 World Cup 2026 Taking to social media, the Pakistan government tweeted that Pakistan will participate in the T20 World Cup. Mohsin Naqvi, who is also Pakistan’s interior minister, had met his country’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif earlier on 26 January and had announced that a final decision would be taken either on Friday or Monday, ‘keeping all options on the table.’ Pakistan to boycott the T20 World Cup clash against India Pakistan had earlier threatened to boycott the T20 World Cup after the International Cricket Council (ICC) removed Bangladesh following the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB)’s refusal to visit India, citing security concerns. Naqvi had publicly criticised the ICC, accusing the apex body of committing ‘injustice’, casting uncertainty on Pakistan’s participation in the tournament. A subsequent report had claimed that the ICC were planning to slap Pakistan with severe sanctions, like banning them from all bilateral cricket and cancelling all NOCs (No-Objection Certificate) for the Pakistan Super League. A day after Naqvi’s comments, Pakistan announced their squad for the T20 World Cup in a press conference in Lahore. However, instead of abandoning the tournament, they have decided not to play the game against India only. Boycott move perceived as mark of protest for Bangladesh’s WC omission Pakistan government’s decision is being perceived as a mark of protest after the ICC replaced Bangladesh with Scotland, not accepting the latter’s demand of shifting its matches from India to Sri Lanka due to security reasons. What will be the impact on India? The Indian and Pakistani teams are in Group A of the World Cup. Each group has five teams, and two teams from each group will advance to the Super 8 stage. A boycott by Pakistan would mean that India would automatically receive the two points for this match, making India’s path to the Super 8 much easier. Besides India and Pakistan, Group A includes Namibia, the Netherlands, and the USA. Pakistan could still reach the Super 8 stage by performing well in its remaining matches. How much loss will ICC incur if India-Pakistan clash doesn’t take place? The India-Pakistan match is the most-watched match in the World Cup. Often, its viewership surpasses even that of the final. The biggest loss from this match not happening would be for the broadcaster. The broadcaster has already sold all the advertising slots for the match. The ICC will not suffer a direct loss as it has already sold the media rights. However, the broadcaster might demand compensation from the ICC for the losses incurred due to the cancellation of this match. According to various analyses, the revenue generated from a single India-Pakistan match in the World Cup accounts for approximately 8 to 10% of the total revenue of the entire tournament. Why couldn’t Pakistan withdraw from the World Cup? The PCB fully supported the Bangladesh Cricket Board’s security concerns regarding not playing in India, but it wanted to do so within certain limits to avoid any action from the ICC (International Cricket Council). There is a tripartite agreement between the BCCI, PCB, and ICC. Under this agreement, all India-Pakistan matches in ICC tournaments until 2027 will be played at neutral venues. The PCB cannot break this agreement. Pakistan’s entire World Cup schedule is in Sri Lanka. Even if the team reaches the final, the final will also be played there. Therefore, they could not boycott the tournament. Why did Naqvi threaten to withdraw from the World Cup? After Bangladesh refused to play in India, the ICC removed them from the World Cup. Scotland was given entry into the tournament in their place. In protest, PCB chief Mohsin Naqvi threatened to withdraw from the World Cup. He told the newspaper Dawn, “The ICC has treated Bangladesh unfairly. We are now waiting for the government’s decision. If they refuse, we will also not play in the tournament.” Following this, the ICC warned the PCB that if Pakistan withdrew from the T20 World Cup, action would be taken against them. Why did Bangladesh refuse to play in India? Due to the killing of Hindus in Bangladesh, the BCCI did not allow Mustafizur Rahman to play in the IPL. He was removed from the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) team on January 3rd at the behest of the BCCI. Angered by this, the Bangladesh government banned the broadcast of IPL matches in their country. Following this, citing concerns for the players’ safety, they also demanded a change of venue for the T20 World Cup, which is scheduled to begin on February 7th.