Lahore | Pakistan on Sunday announced a boycott of its high-profile men's T20 World Cup group league match against India, a move that is likely to have repercussions, even as the government cleared the national team's participation in the rest of the global event, starting February 7.
The decision, conveyed through an official government statement, is being seen as a political protest linked to Bangladesh’s removal from the tournament after the world body declined its request to shift matches from India to Sri Lanka on security grounds.
Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) had said that it would reassess its participation following that decision as it showed solidarity with Bangladesh.
In a statement posted on its social media handle, the government of Pakistan said it has granted approval to the Pakistan cricket team to take part in the tournament but said the team “shall not take the field” for the February 15 fixture against India in Colombo.
The decision brings an end to days of speculation over Pakistan's participation in the tournament, which is being co-hosted by India and Sri Lanka, and comes amid heightened political tensions in the region.
"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," the government posted on social media..
The India-Pakistan clash is the most anticipated fixture of any ICC event, drawing peak global viewership, sponsorship interest and broadcast revenues.
Its boycott is expected to pose logistical and regulatory challenges for the ICC, which has built much of the tournament’s scheduling, marketing and commercial strategy around the marquee encounter.
While a walkover would hand full points to India, the ICC retains the authority to impose financial penalties on the PCB.
Pakistan are scheduled to open their campaign against Netherlands on February 7, followed by matches against USA on February 10 and Namibia on February 18. All matches will be played at the SSC ground in Colombo.
The current standoff is due to ICC's decision to remove Bangladesh from the tournament after it declined to accept security assurances for hosting matches in India and sought a complete shift of its fixtures to Sri Lanka..
The ICC rejected the request and replaced Bangladesh with Scotland, a move that triggered sharp reactions within Pakistan's cricketing and political establishment even as several former Pakistan players and officials advised against taking any decision that can hit country's cricket. However the PCB or the government hasn't made it clear as to what happens if Pakistan and India clash in the knock-out stages of the competition.
New Delhi | The International Cricket Council is set to take a slew of punitive actions against Pakistan in the wake of their government's decision to boycott the T20 World Cup match against India, including a possible ban from the upcoming edition of the marquee event.
The other sanctions could range from top member nations refusing to play bilateral series with them, hefty financial sanctions and also, ban on overseas players' participation in the PSL.
The PCB, in solidarity with Bangladesh's ouster from the T20 World Cup, has decided not to play their group league game against India in Colombo on February 15 despite having a binding contract with the ICC and the BCCI on playing matches on neutral soil.
"The PCB hasn't yet officially informed ICC but since there has been an official announcement, the ICC is expected to take some stringent actions. The ICC board will be meeting tomorrow (Monday) virtually and decide whether Pakistan should be allowed to play in the tournament. In case they are allowed, there could be some strict punishment for PCB," an ICC Board source told PTI on conditions of anonymity.
So what are the possible sanctions expected against the PCB?
"Since they are in violation of a binding contract, the ICC's member boards could refuse to travel to Pakistan for the bilateral series. In case they play the bilateral series, there is every chance that the results will not impact the ICC rankings across formats.
"There remains a chance of Pakistan not being awarded any WTC points," the source added.
However, what might hit Pakistan the hardest is sanction on its revenue generator -- the Pakistan Super League.
"Barring retired players or free agents, the current overseas internationals could be barred from participating in the PSL. Apart from that, the revenue loss incurred by ICC's host broadcaster Jio-Star which could range into millions of dollars, will have to compensated by the PCB. It goes without saying that their annual revenue will also not be disbursed," the source added.
In case the ICC bans Pakistan from the tournament, then Uganda will be the replacement team but that will only be decided after the board meeting.
Normally, the advertisement rates for an India-Pakistan T20 game commands premium rates of anything between Rs 25 lakh to Rs 40 lakh per 10 seconds and simply advertisement revenue loss could be of more than Rs 200 crore.
Salient Points
Implications of Pakistan's India match boycott:
1. Completely banned from the tournament.
2. ICC annual revenue pay-out withheld.
3. PCB asked to pay full compensation to Jio-Star for revenue loss.
4. Sanctions on bilateral series, impact on WTC points and ICC rankings.
5. Banning all overseas players (save free agents) from playing in the PSL.