The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) reportedly canceled a special event to unveil the national men’s team’s jersey for the 2026 T20 World Cup.
According to NDTV, the reveal was scheduled for after the toss
in Sunday’s second T20I between Pakistan and Australia at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore, but was put off due to supposed ‘unavoidable circumstances’. However, the report said that the decision was linked to the uncertainty surrounding Pakistan’s participation in the marquee tournament, with Mohsin Naqvi and the national government weighing up its options.
The country’s foreign office is expected to confirm its decision on Monday (February 2), barely six days before the tournament kicks off on February 7. Till then, Pakistan has refrained from even indirect mentions of the World Cup.
Pakistan doesn’t seem to have a direct issue with the International Cricket Council (ICC), at least a public one. However, the PCB has claimed it wants to express its solidarity with Bangladesh, which were ejected from the tournament after the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) refused to travel to India.
While Bangladesh claimed security concerns for their group stage matches in Kolkata and Mumbai — the claims were rejected by the ICC, who decided to bring Scotland on after a three-week-long impasse — Pakistan don’t have any such concerns for their matches, which are already in Sri Lanka. Even that is under an agreement between the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), the ICC, and the PCB.
Any boycott of the tournament at this stage could bring heavy sanctions and even court cases for Pakistan, for it would be in direct breach of the member participation agreement. As per reports in the Pakistani media, Naqvi and Co. are also considering indirect methods to register their protest against the ICC, like boycotting (and thus forfeiting) the India game on February 15 or wearing black armbands for some matches.
