T20 WC: Pakistan captain breaks silence on India match boycott
What's the story
Pakistan T20I captain Salman Ali Agha has reacted to the Pakistan Cricket Board's decision to boycott their match against India in the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup. The high-profile clash, scheduled for February 15 at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo, will not go ahead as planned. While the Pakistani government has approved participation in the tournament, they have decided to skip this particular fixture.
Player response
'Humara decision nahi hai, hum kuch nahi kar sakte'
Agha clarified that the players had no say in this decision and will abide by the directives of their national board and government. "We are going to the World Cup. Humara decision nahi hai, hum kuch nahi kar sakte (The decision not to play against India isn't ours, so we cannot do anything about it). Whatever our government, PCB chief tells us to do, we will do that only," he told reporters after the third T20I against Australia in Lahore.
ICC reaction
ICC reacts to Pakistan's partial boycott
The International Cricket Council (ICC) has responded sharply to Pakistan's decision to partially boycott the tournament. "While the ICC awaits official communication from the PCB, this position of selective participation is difficult to reconcile with the fundamental premise of a global sporting event where all qualified teams are expected to compete on equal terms," it said. The body also stressed that such decisions could affect cricket in Pakistan and globally.
Statement
How the matter escalated?
The whole row stems from the BCCI's order to drop Bangladesh seamer Mustafizur Rahman from the Kolkata Knight Riders squad. This prompted the Bangladesh government to officially announce that its team would not play matches in India. After the ICC rejected a series of requests from the Bangladesh Cricket Board, Scotland replaced the side. On the sidelines of this matter, the PCB showed support for the BCB. The former announced it decision to boycott the India game on Sunday.
Team details
Pakistan's squad for the 2026 T20 World Cup
Pakistan's squad for the 2026 T20 World Cup includes Salman Ali Agha (captain), Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Khawaja Mohammad Nafay (wk), Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Salman Mirza, Naseem Shah, Sahibzada Farhan (wk), Saim Ayub, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Shadab Khan, Usman Khan (wk), Usman Tariq. They will play all their matches in Sri Lanka starting February 7 against the Netherlands.