Pakistan to boycott T20 World Cup match vs India after conditional approval to participate

New Delhi: Pakistan will not play India in their scheduled Men’s T20 World Cup match at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo on February 15, after the government granted the team conditional approval to take part in the tournament.

The statement did not specify a reason for that decision, though it is believed that Pakistan will boycott the match against India to show solidarity with Bangladesh, who were pulled out of Men’s T20 World Cup for seeking relocation of their matches out of India, citing security issues and were replaced by Scotland in Group C.

“The 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 shall not take the field in the match scheduled on 15th February 2026 against India,” said the government’s official account on ‘X’ account.

Earlier this week, PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi met with Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif, and it was then that he announced that the final decision on Pakistan's participation would be taken on either January 30 or February 2. However, the final verdict was announced a day earlier, which now leaves the tournament on the edge of a fresh problem, considering the revenue coming from the marquee clash.

Pakistan had also postponed the team's jersey reveal for the Men’s T20 World Cup, and it was understood that the event would take place once the verdict on the team's participation in the upcoming tournament was announced.

Pakistan, the 2009 edition winners, are in Group A for the T20 World Cup alongside India, Namibia, the Netherlands, and the USA. The Salman Ali Agha-led side will begin their campaign on February 7 against the Netherlands in Colombo.