Saturday 24 / January / 2026
LAHORE: Pakistan's participation at the upcoming ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026 has been thrown into uncertainty after the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Mohsin Naqvi said on Saturday that a final decision would be made after talking to Pakistan's government, according to a report on ESPNcricinfo.
Speaking shortly after the ICC officially removed Bangladesh from the T20 World Cup owing to their refusal to play in India, Naqvi accused the ICC of "double standards" favouring India, and termed what happened to Bangladesh "an injustice".
"Our stance [on World Cup participation] will be what the government of Pakistan instructs me," he said.
"The Prime Minister is not in Pakistan right now. When he returns, I'll be able to give you our final decision. It's the government's decision. We obey them, not the ICC."
Over the past week or so, Pakistan has firmly thrown its support behind Bangladesh in their dispute with the ICC demanding a venue outside of India to play their T20 World Cup matches.
Naqvi was critical of the decision, calling it an injustice to Bangladesh. "I think Bangladesh has been hard done by," he said. "You can't have double standards. You can't say for one country [India] they can do whatever they want and for the others to have to do the complete opposite. That's why we've taken this stand, and made clear Bangladesh have had an injustice done to them. They should play in the World Cup, they are a major stakeholder in cricket."
"If the government of Pakistan says we mustn't play, then maybe the ICC will bring in a 22nd team (after Scotland). It's up to the government."
Pakistan, who play all of their games in Sri Lanka after a deal struck with the BCCI and the ICC before the 2025 Champions Trophy, are scheduled to play the opening game of the tournament, against Netherlands on February 7.
