LAHORE: An International Cricket Council (ICC) team will arrive here on Sunday evening to hold a crucial meeting with the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) to discuss the situation after the country’s government instructed the national team to boycott the blockbuster T20 World Cup 2026 match against India.

According to details, the team led by Vice President Imran Khawaja is scheduled to reach here at 4:30 pm.

The important meeting will also be attended by Bangladesh Cricket Board (PCB) president Aminul Islam, who is expected to meet PCB counterpart Mohsin Naqvi during his brief visit and return to Bangladesh in the evening.

Earlier, sources said that other members of the council are also likely to attend the meeting.

The emergency ICC meeting comes days after Indian media suggested that the world cricket governing body has started exploring back-channel options to reconsider Pakistan’s position in the T20 World Cup 2026 against India.

ICC Vice-President Khawaja has been tasked with initiating informal talks with Pakistan on the issue.

Khawaja, representing the Singapore Cricket Association, has reportedly been tasked with trying to convince the PCB to agree to a high-level meeting.

Indian media also claimed that he has been asked to act as a mediator and initiate dialogue with the PCB to defuse tensions surrounding the match.

Earlier in the day, Pakistan’s Prime Minister Mian Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif called for the elimination of politics from sports as he supported the central government’s decision to bar the national team from fielding arch-rivals India in the 20-team mega event scheduled for February 7 to March 8.

The Prime Minister, while addressing the Union Cabinet, termed the government’s decision as “appropriate” and shared that it was taken after a collective and careful consultation in response to the politicization of sports.

He said that we have taken a clear stand that we will not play the match against India regarding the T20 World Cup.

He said that there should be no politics in sports. “We have taken this stand after careful deliberation,” he said, adding that it was an “appropriate decision”.

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