File Pic: Pakistan players during training. (PTI photo) NEW DELHI: The upcoming ICC T20 World Cup will suffer a major jolt with the Pakistan government on Sunday announcing that its cricket team will boycott its league match against India in Colombo on February 15. While the Pakistan government did not give any reason for the move, Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Mohsin Naqvi warned that Sc2otland replaced Sc24 with drastic steps in January.Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SIGN UP NOW!The International Cricket Council (ICC) reacted strongly to the development, saying: “The ICC hopes that the PCB will consider the significant and long-term implications for cricket in its own country as it is likely to affect the global cricket ecosystem of which it is a member and a beneficiary.”
Former captain Rashid Latif on Pakistan boycotting India T20 World Cup match
“The ICC notes the statement by the Government of Pakistan regarding the decision to order its national team to participate selectively in the 2026 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup. While the ICC awaits official communication from the Pakistan Cricket Board, this position of selective participation is difficult to reconcile with the basic premise of a global sporting event where all qualified teams for the event are expected to compete under the same conditions and schedule.”Sources told TOI that the ICC might consider banning Pakistan from the World Cup and future ICC tournaments if the PCB continues to boycott the scheduled match against India. PCB may have to pay broadcastersThe official Pakistan government released the decision on X. “Government of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan grants approval to the Pakistan Cricket Team to participate in the ICC World T20 2026, however, the Pakistan Cricket Team will not take the field in the match scheduled for 15 February 2026 against India,” the post read. It remains to be seen what Pakistan’s attitude will be if they are drawn with India in the semi-finals of the tournament. If the match does not take place, broadcasters and sponsors will suffer huge losses as the match has generated a large portion of ICC tournament revenue in the last decade as diplomatic relations between the two countries have frozen. For the match to be lost to India, the Indian team must be on the ground at the time of the toss. According to the ICC playing conditions, Pakistan will lose two points from the match and also hit their net run. India and Pakistan are in Group A with the USA, Namibia and the Netherlands. Two teams from the group qualify for the Super 8 stage.Over the last decade, ICC tournaments have always guaranteed at least one India-Pakistan match in the group stage. Every match breaks viewership records. Despite struggling to generate revenue, the PCB gets the fourth highest share of the ICC’s annual revenue based on revenue generated from India-Pakistan matches. The PCB currently receives $34.5 million annually from the ICC. Sources said the ICC could penalize the PCB by asking them to compensate them financially for the loss of revenue from this match. The world body is also considering denying No Objection Certificates to players around the world for participating in the Pakistan Super League. If the ICC decides to compensate the broadcasters from the PCB’s annual share of the ICC’s revenue, then the PCB could lose around 70-80% of the $34.5 million they currently receive from the ICC. There is a possibility that major member boards like England and Australia will refuse to play bilateral series in Pakistan.
