Bad news for Pakistan, after Bangladesh they might be forced to…

PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi has cast doubt on Pakistan’s participation in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026, saying a final decision will be made after consultations with the Pakistani government.

ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026, ICC, BCB, BCCI, Mohsin Naqvi, Kolkata Knight Riders, KKR, IPL 2026, Mustafizur Rahman, PCB, Pakistan Cricket Board, Bangladesh Cricket Board

New Delhi: Pakistan’s participation in the upcoming ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 is now uncertain after PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi said a final call would be taken following discussions with the Pakistani government. Speaking soon after the ICC officially removed Bangladesh from the tournament for refusing to play in India, Naqvi accused the governing body of adopting “double standards” in favour of India and described Bangladesh’s exclusion as “unjust.”

“Our stance [on World Cup participation] will be what the government of Pakistan instructs me,” he said. “The Prime Minister is not in Pakistan right now. When he returns, I’ll be able to give you our final decision. It’s the government’s decision. We obey them, not the ICC.”

Pakistan has strongly backed Bangladesh in their dispute with the ICC

In the past week, Pakistan has strongly backed Bangladesh in their dispute with the ICC, calling for their T20 World Cup matches to be moved to a venue outside India. Reports from last week’s ICC meeting indicate that the PCB was the only board to support the BCB’s position. While the tournament is jointly hosted by India and Sri Lanka, all of Bangladesh’s matches were scheduled in India.

Bangladesh, however, have stated that playing in India is no longer safe after the BCCI directed Kolkata Knight Riders on January 3 to release Mustafizur Rahman from their IPL 2026 squad.

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BCB wrote to the ICC after consultation with the government

The directive was issued in the midst of deteriorating relations between Bangladesh and India, despite the fact that no explanation was provided. On January 4, the BCB wrote to the ICC after consultation with the government that the Bangladesh team would not travel to India for its T20 World Cup matches due to security concerns, a stance it stuck to through several subsequent discussions with the ICC.

Bangladesh’s requests were consistently denied by the ICC, and earlier this week they were given a deadline to agree to the schedule or risk being kicked out of the competition. The ICC formally announced on Saturday that Bangladesh would be eliminated from the T20 World Cup and replaced by Scotland, despite Bangladesh’s continued stance.

Naqvi described Bangladesh exclusion as an injustice

Naqvi condemned the decision, describing it as an injustice to Bangladesh, “I think Bangladesh has been hard done by,” he said. “You can’t have double standards. You can’t say for one country [India] they can do whatever they want and for the others to have to do the complete opposite. That’s why we’ve taken this stand, and made clear Bangladesh have had an injustice done to them. They should play in the World Cup, they are a major stakeholder in cricket.”

Although local, unverified reports suggested that the PCB might boycott the World Cup in solidarity with Bangladesh if they were removed, the board declined to confirm this to ESPNcricinfo when approached. Naqvi’s comments to the media on Saturday marked the first direct statement from the PCB on the matter, in which he emphasized repeatedly that the decision was no longer within the board’s control.

“If the government of Pakistan says we mustn’t play, then maybe the ICC will bring in a 22nd team (after Scotland). It’s up to the government.”

Pakistan, set to play all their matches in Sri Lanka following an agreement with the BCCI and ICC ahead of the 2025 Champions Trophy, are scheduled to face the Netherlands in the tournament opener on February 7.