Bangladesh Cricket Board President Amin ul Islam arrived in Lahore on Sunday ahead of a virtual meeting between the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and the International Cricket Council (ICC) amid the standoff over Pakistan’s proposed boycott of the T20 World Cup match against India.
Amin ul Islam met Pakistan Cricket Board chairman Mohsin Naqvi in Lahore and is expected to be part of virtual discussions aimed at persuading Pakistan to reconsider its decision not to play India in the T20 World Cup clash scheduled for February 15.
Naqvi did not comment much on the instructions from the government to boycott the match in India, but a reliable source said that the situation changed after the Sri Lankan Cricket Board sent an email to the PCB asking them to end the boycott.
ICC Director General Sanjog Gupta was also in Colombo to meet Sri Lankan board chairman Shammi Silva, who had emailed Naqvi to play the match against India in the World Cup.
The ICC has already asked Pakistan to explain how the “force majeure” clause can be used to justify the team’s refusal to play a T20 World Cup match against India after the PCB tried to wriggle out of the situation by shifting the onus to its government.
But now there has been a glimmer of hope as the PCB approached the ICC for talks, according to an ICC director who believes the marquee clash will eventually happen.
The ICC is currently working with the board in a structured manner to explore possible solutions, with interest in the game having to supersede unilateral action.
Pakistan decided to boycott India’s match in solidarity with Bangladesh, who were replaced by Scotland after they refused to travel to India for the world cup matches due to security concerns.