ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Mohsin Naqvi is set to hold a press conference to reveal the future of Pakistan’s participation in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 to be held in India and Sri Lanka from February 7 to March 8.
This comes after a high-profile meeting between Naqvi and Prime Minister Shebaz Sharif in Islamabad on Monday, during which the PCB chief described the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) “double standards” to the prime minister.
Naqvi highlighted the ICC’s use of conflicting rules, saying India had earlier refused to play in Pakistan during the Champions Trophy 2025, but was offered an alternative venue.
He also pointed out that Bangladesh, who raised security concerns about traveling to India for the World Cup, were instead dropped from the tournament and moved to Scotland.
The PCB chief is reported to have warned that withdrawing from the World Cup could result in the loss of substantial participation fees.
However, he insisted that not playing against India would cost India more.
Expressing full confidence in Prime Minister Shehbaz Naqvi, the sources added, “We will take the decision in the interest of Pakistan and Bangladesh.”
Skipping the match against India would cost Pakistan two points and have significant financial implications for the ICC.
The 20-team tournament was abruptly changed when the ICC replaced Bangladesh with Scotland after the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) and ICC failed to reach an agreement following security concerns.
The issue was reportedly exacerbated by the Board of Control for Cricket in India’s (BCCI) directives regarding fast bowler Mustafizur Rahman.
Pakistan’s T20 World Cup campaign is set to begin against the Netherlands on February 7 in Colombo, followed by matches against USA on February 10, India on February 15 and Namibia on February 18.
The Super Eight phase will be held from February 21 to March 1 in Colombo and Kolkata, with the semi-finals on March 3 and 5 and the final on March 8 in either Ahmedabad or Colombo.
On Sunday, the PCB announced the Pakistan squad for the tournament during a media conference attended by PCB High Performance Director and Men’s National Selection Committee member Aqib Javed, head coach Mike Hesson and T20I captain Salman Ali Agha.
Pakistan Team: Salman Ali Agha (catch), Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Faheem Ashraf, Faqar Zaman, Khawaja Mohammad Nafe (wk), Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Salman Mirza, Naseem Shah, Sahibzada Farhan (wk), Saim Ayub, Shaheen Shahab Khan