Sports Desk: Pakistan has not yet decided whether its national team would take part in the ICC T20 world cup to be hosted in India as senior consultations between the government and cricketing authorities are underway, officials said Thursday.
Met with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif in Islamabad, Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman Mohsin Naqvi held a meeting with him where the changing situation, the recent decisions of International Cricket Council (ICC) and the position taken by Pakistan on the tournament were discussed. Sources privy to the discussion say that both parties were interested in pursuing all avenues but still putting national interests first.
Naqvi informed the prime minister of the ICCs two-sidedness by providing examples of countries where India was offered a different venue, other teams were not. Sharif instructed PCB officials to be diplomatic and long-term in addressing the issue.
Naqvi, in a post at the social media platform, X, stated that, the prime-minister had been briefed comprehensively and he was supposed to look at every aspect and arrive at a final decision. He further said that a decision on whether or not to involve Pakistan will be made by Friday or Monday.
It was reported that the PCB officials also emphasized on the losses that Pakistan would have a chance to end up making in the event of not participating in the tournament including loss of ICC participation revenues. Opposition to this was discussed to include symbolic protest alternatives, including having the players wear black armbands when they were playing.
According to the cricket analysts, the move by Pakistan may bring great consequences to the international politics of cricket, and the commercial aspects of the tournament especially the popular matches with India.
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