MUMBAI (Kashmir English): Pakistan has allowed the national team to participate in the T20 World Cup, but in solidarity with Bangladesh, the Pakistani side will not take the field in the scheduled match against India on February 15, which is feared to cause heavy losses to Indian broadcasters.
The Pak-India cricket match is considered the biggest sporting event in the world. According to the reports, Pakistan’s refusal to play against India is feared to cause Indian broadcasters a loss of approximately 500 million dollars (141 billion rupees), while the ICC is likely to lose millions of dollars from the match’s gate money.
T20 World Cup revenue
According to rough estimates, half of the revenue from the T20 World Cup comes from the Pak-India match.
Pakistan receives a share of 35 million dollars from the ICC every year. After the broadcasters’ loss, the PCB may also face legal action from the ICC.
Despite not playing the match against India, Pakistan’s chances of qualifying for the second round are bright.
According to government sources, the main reason for boycotting the match against India is the ICC’s biased decision regarding Bangladesh.
It should be noted that the Bangladesh Cricket Board had refused to send its team to India due to security concerns during the T20 World Cup starting in India and Sri Lanka on February 7, after which Pakistan supported Bangladesh’s stance.
However, the ICC did not accept the Bangladesh Cricket Board’s stance and replaced Bangladesh with Scotland in the T20 World Cup 2026.
Pakistan has adopted a strong stance on the ICC’s India-friendly policies and the exclusion of Bangladesh from the tournament.
