Pakistan's cricket team has been given the green light to compete in the ICC T20 World Cup 2026 but the government has confirmed they will skip their scheduled match against India.
"The Government of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan grants approval to the Pakistan Cricket Team to participate in the ICC World T20 2026," the government said in a post on X on Sunday, February 1.
It added, "However, the Pakistan Cricket Team shall not take the field in the match scheduled on 15th February 2026 against India."
Pakistan's participation in the tournament became uncertain after the International Cricket Council's (ICC) replaced Bangladesh with Scotland after Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) refused to send its team to India amid political tensions and security concerns.
As per multiple reports, Bangladesh repeatedly requested the ICC to relocate their group matches to Sri Lanka but ICC rejected their request, saying there was no security threat and relocating the games "would not be feasible."
Geo News reported that Pakistan's decision to skip February 15 match against India is "intended to show solidarity with Bangladesh."
As per the outlet, the decision also served as a protest against what Pakistan saw as unfair treatment of Bangladesh by the ICC.
The T20 World Cup 2026 is set to kick off on February 7 with India and Sri Lanka co-hosting the action-packed tournament.
The 10th edition of the tournament will feature 54 thrilling matches between 20 teams, which have been divided into four groups and run until March 8.
