• Govt confirms team will participate in tournament, but will skip Feb 15 match with arch-rivals ‘in solidarity with Bangladesh’ after ICC move
• No official word on whether team will play India if they meet in knockout stages
• Move to hit ICC revenues as most-anticipated contest is scuttled
• Greenshirts to depart for Sri Lanka today, will play first match against the Netherlands on 7th
• ICC expects PCB to explore ‘mutually acceptable’ resolution

ISLAMABAD / LAHORE: While Pakistan will take part in the ICC T20 World Cup, scheduled to start in India and Sri Lanka from Feb 7, the government says the team will not play its match with arch-rivals India, scheduled to be held on Feb 15 in Colombo.

According to an official annou­ncement on Sunday, “The government of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan grants approval to the Pakistan Cricket Team to participate in the ICC World T20 Cup 2026, however, the Pakistan Cricket Team shall not take the field in the match scheduled on February 15, 2026, against India.”

A government source told Dawn that Pakistan had refused to play against India to express solidarity with Bangladesh, who had been dropped from the tournament after refusing to play in India, which is one of the co-hosts of the ICC T20 World Cup.

According to the government source, the primary reason for boycotting the match with India was the ICC’s “biased decision” towards Bangladesh.

“The government of Pakistan wanted to show solidarity with Bangladesh. Therefore, as a protest, the national team was restricted from playing its match with India scheduled for February 15,” the source added.

Although this means that Pakistan will not face India in the group stages, insiders said there was no decision on whether the national team would play its neighbour in the knockout stages.

However, there was no official word on whether Pakistan would also boycott an India fixture at the knockout stages, or not.

Speaking to the press following their match against Australia, Pakistan T20 team captain Sal­man Ali Agha said they would do as instructed by the cricket board.

“We are going to the World Cup,” he said, adding that the decision not to play against India was made by the government.

‘Double standards’

The ICC did not extend the same relief to Bangladesh that it had given to India and Pakistan in the past.

Bangladesh, having sour diplomatic relations with India, had refused to play its World Cup mat­c­hes in India and requested the ICC to shift its matches to Sri Lanka.

However, the ICC, with a 14-2 majority, refused the request. Subsequently, Scotland replaced Bangladesh.

The Pakistan team is leaving for Sri Lanka today (on Monday) for the ICC World Cup, and will play their first mat­ch against the Netherlands on Saturday (Feb 7).

It is worth noting that the ICC had extended a concession to India, which did not want to visit Pakistan for the ICC Champions Trophy held in 2025, under the hybrid model adopted by the ICC to end such issues.

The source said the government was of the view that the ICC’s decision was an example of ‘double standards’. “Therefore, it was necessary to register our protest,” the source said.

The decision to support Dhaka comes amid a significant shift in Pakistan-Bangladesh relations, since the ouster of former PM Sheikh Hasina Wajid, who was forced to flee following massive protests led by students.

Besides the treatment meted out to Bangladesh, the unprecedented January 31 attacks in Balochistan are also said to be one of the reasons that compelled Pak­istan to snub India. Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi, who is also chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), had directly blamed India for the deadly violence.

Last week, the ICC rejected Bangladesh’s request for a venue change, prompting Pakistan to review its decision to participate in the tournament.

In this regard, the PCB chief held two meetings with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, and the decision not to play with India came after their meeting held on Sunday. The decision by Pakistan will dent ICC revenues, since matches between Pakistan and India had always been a major source of revenue for the ICC in the form of media rights and gate money.

Both sides have not played a bilateral series in almost two decades. India has been refusing to play in Pakistan for the past 20 years, saying that its government had not allowed them to visit Pakistan.

In contrast, the Pakistani government had adopted the policy of keeping politics and sports separate and always allowed the Pakistan side to play ICC and Asian Cricket Council events held in India over the past two decades.

In response to the development even before the official communication from the Pakistan Cricket Board, the ICC in a statement mentioned the position of “selective participation is difficult to reconcile with the fundamental premise of a global sporting event where all qualified teams are expected to compete on equal terms per the event schedule.”

It expressed the hope that the PCB will consider the significant and long-term implications for cricket in its own country as this is likely to impact the global cricket ecosystem, which it is itself a member and beneficiary of.

“The ICC’s priority remains the successful delivery of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup which should also be the responsibility of all its members including the PCB. It expects the PCB to explore a mutually acceptable resolution, which protects the interests of all stakeholders,” the ICC stated.

Published in Dawn, February 2nd, 2026