BCCI finds Mohsin Naqvi’s weak spot (Source: @i_mAfridi/x.com)
While instructing KKR to remove Mustafizur Rahman in the upcoming IPL 2026, the BCCI wouldn’t even imagine the kind of drama that is coming up next. Bangladesh stormed out of the tournament in protest, Pakistan backed them by confirming T20 World Cup 2026 participation, yet stunned the cricket world by boycotting the India clash.
As the India-Pakistan drama is going on, the BCCI pointed out Mohsin Naqvi's PCB’s weak point. BCCI official slammed Pakistan’s double standards, pointing out that their U-19 team played India the very day the Mohsin Naqvi-led PCB announced its boycott.
BCCI official pulls the curtain back on Mohsin Naqvi's PCB
Whenever India and Pakistan take the field against each other, the world takes a pause and witnesses the fierce face-offs between the arch-rivals. But this time, the fire of the rivalry spread even before they walked on the big stage. What followed was a full-blown storm that rattled the sport and reignited the fiercest rivalry in cricket.
But PCB’s double standard grabbed the attention as the day the government made the announcement of boycotting the group stage clash against India, the Pakistan U-19 side clashed witrh India U-19 side at the big stage of the U-19 World Cup.
Adding to the confusion, Mohsin Naqvi's board has offered no clear explanation behind the controversial call, only deepening the storm.
Had the match been scheduled in India, the PCB’s stance might have carried some weight, but with a prior commitment to play at a neutral venue, the boycott now looks baseless. Calling out his move weak, a BCCI official tore apart the Pakistan PM and PCB chief.
“When Pakistan had no problem playing India in the Under-19 World Cup on the same day their government put out the post to boycott the T20 World Cup game, this wouldn’t cut ice. Besides, when it comes to the Pakistan Cricket Board and the Pakistan government, there is not much difference. The Pakistan prime minister is the patron-in-chief of PCB, and the board’s chief (Mohsin Naqvi) is a minister,” the official said.
A mischievous move that politicises the game
India-Pakistan’s geopolitical tension is known to the world, and that made the rivalry even more iconic. After ecent strained relationship with Bangladesh, a similar kind of rivalry is growing on the sidelines. Citing security concerns, Bangladesh chose not to travel to India and eventually pulled out of the T20 World Cup 2026.
Even after the India-Pakistan clash was shifted to a neutral venue in Sri Lanka, the Men in Green’s decision to boycott the match raised eyebrows. Reflecting on that matter, the BCCI official addressed this matter as “just mischief’.
“The Pakistan and Bangladesh boards are mixing politics with cricket. Despite the Indian government’s repeated statements ensuring security to their team, the Bangladesh team didn’t travel to India. Now, Pakistan too is being unreasonable. There has been an understanding that India and Pakistan will play at a neutral venue in ICC events. Boycotting the game is just mischief,” the official added.
Will the ICC crack down on Pakistan over the India match boycott?
After the international relationship between India and Pakistan strained, the bilateral series between the arch-rivals has been on hold for a long time. As only ICC events are the chance to see the epic rivalry, Pakistan’s recent boycott stance is also casting a shadow over that.
The big question now is whether Pakistan will be forced to pay a heavy price for walking away from the game. ICC can ban the nation temporarily, but there is no guarantee for them. Cricket history has seen several instances where teams refused to travel to another country, citing security concerns, making the situation far from unprecedented.
But Pakistan’s matter is even more different. As they are not scheduled to play in India, the ICC could use that very gap as leverage. Since the Mohsin Naqvi-led PCB is willing to play every game except the one against India, the ICC may well question the logic behind such a bizarre move.
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