Pakistan PM and PCB chief Mohsin Naqvi - (Source: X.com)
On Saturday, February 7, Salman Agha and his men kickstarted their T20 World Cup 2026 campaign as they took on the Netherlands for the opening game of the 10th edition in Sri Lanka. Meanwhile, a major development took place in Pakistan as the Mohsin Naqvi-led PCB is likely to reconsider its boycott against India.
A report from the Hindu stated that Sri Lanka Cricket Board are also panicking because of the boycott as they will lose out on a lot of revenue, which they would have generated from ticket sales, hospitality and other sources. Therefore, the SLC wrote to the PCB, urging them to reconsider their decision.
Mohsin Naqvi open to supporting Sri Lanka cricket
The report added that Mohsin Naqvi is actually open to help Sri Lanka cricket and is looking to finalise a meeting with Pakistan PM Shehbaz Sharif to mull over the possibility of revoking their boycott against India on February 15.
“Obviously, Pakistan has always enjoyed very close and friendly ties with Sri Lanka at the government-to-government and cricket level. So the mail from their Board can't be ignored just like that,” a source aware of the developments said on Saturday.
“Mohsin Naqvi has been contacted directly by the Sri Lankan Board President Shammi Silva and has been reminded that at this time Sri Lanka need Pakistan to step up for them as without Pakistan and India matches, the Sri Lankan Board would stand to lose extra revenues from gate money, hospitality sales etc,” the source added.
“PCB Chairman Mohsin Naqvi has not even been in the country since yesterday and is due back today. He will bring the email to the notice of the Prime Minister on ending the boycott of the India match, and then a decision will be made on the matter by Monday,” the source said.
Why is the Pakistan Cricket Board ready to help Sri Lankan cricket?
For the unversed, Sri Lanka toured Pakistan in November 2025. During that time, Islamabad saw a suicide bombing, following which a few Sri Lankan players wanted to leave the tour midway. However, Naqvi interevened and requested the Sri Lanka Board to not call the players back, assuring full security for the remainder of the series.
SLC adhered to the request and told their players to stay back in Pakistan. Therefore, the board is now expecting Pakistan to return the favour and help Sri Lanka gain financially from hosting the T20 World Cup 2026.
What has been the matter so far between PCB and ICC?
It all began with Bangladesh Cricket Board having issue with playing in India for T20 World Cup 2026. The BCB cited security issues and seeked support from Pakistan to put pressure from ICC.
However, the Jay Shah-led council did not approve of the demand and after multiple discussions, they decided to replace Bangladesh with Scotland. Eventually, Pakistan faced the pressure to also exit the World Cup.
Mohsin Naqvi held multiple meetings with Pakistan PM and it was decided that Pakistan will play the event but boycott India match on February 15.
