T20 World Cup 2026: Pakistan Confirms Boycott of Feb 15 Match Against India in Colombo

There was confusion over Pakistan’s participation in the tournament for a week. This happened after the International Cricket Council replaced Bangladesh with Scotland. After this decision, PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi warned that Pakistan could boycott the World Cup. He said the final decision would be taken after his meeting with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.

An India–Pakistan match in any ICC event brings huge income. Because of this, the ICC has placed both teams in the same group in almost every tournament since 2012. The schedule is also made so that the two teams can meet more than once. However, due to political tension, there has been no bilateral series between India and Pakistan for the last 14 years.

After Pakistan’s latest decision, there is now a chance that an ICC tournament may end without an India–Pakistan match for the first time since 2010.

BREAKING: The government of Pakistan has said that Pakistan will boycott their T20 World Cup match against India pic.twitter.com/ESu4llHICV

— ESPNcricinfo (@ESPNcricinfo) February 1, 2026

Pakistan Sets Deadline on World Cup Decision

Pakistan had set Monday as the deadline to confirm its participation in the tournament. PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi met Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and delayed the final decision until Friday or Monday. After the meeting, Naqvi posted on social media that the discussion was productive. He said he briefed the Prime Minister on the ICC issue and was told to keep all options open. It was agreed that the final decision would be taken either on Friday or the following Monday.

ICC Removes Bangladesh, Naqvi Hits Out

This situation came after the ICC removed Bangladesh from the tournament. The decision was taken because Bangladesh refused to travel to India for the event. During an ICC board meeting, a large majority voted to remove Bangladesh and replace them with Scotland if they continued to refuse the tour. The Pakistan Cricket Board was the only board that supported Bangladesh.

The ICC gave Bangladesh 24 hours to change their decision, but they stayed firm and did not agree to travel to India. As a result, the ICC replaced Bangladesh with Scotland at the last moment.

After this move, Naqvi accused the ICC of “double standards.” He said Bangladesh had been treated unfairly and deserved to play in the World Cup. He added that all countries should be treated equally and that Bangladesh is an important part of world cricket.