Sri Lanka Police begins preparation for IND vs PAK T20 World Cup match, ignore Mohsin Naqvi

Mohsin Naqvi ignored by Sri Lanka [Source: @Sports_Himanshu, @richardnovay/x]The India vs Pakistan match of the 2026 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup has been officially boycotted by the Pakistan government. In a social media statement earlier this month, the government confirmed that it had barred the ‘Men in Green’ from facing arch-rivals India on political grounds. However, the message appears not to have reached Sri Lanka yet, as the country’s police have already begun putting security arrangements in place for the high-profile encounter. Sri Lanka police to proceed with security as per protocols As reported by a Sri Lanka journalist, Sri Lanka Police has confirmed that they will be moving ahead with the standard security procedures for several matches set to be hosted by the R. Premadasa Stadium. The police will be arranging special security and traffic plan for the scheduled India vs Pakistan Group A fixture, as they have not received any official cancellation of the match from the PCB. Their security plan will also cover two additional matches scheduled for the R. Premadasa Stadium, both involving Sri Lanka. The report further confirmed that more than 1,000 police officers will be deployed and special transport arrangements will be put in place. In doing so, the Sri Lanka Police has seemingly disregarded the Mohsin Naqvi-led PCB’s stance on the matter, continuing to act on the assumption that the fixture remains officially scheduled. Why did Pakistan pull out of India match? On February 1, the Pakistan government confirmed that the Pakistan team will not be facing India in their Group A match of the 2026 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup on February 15. While the government did not divulge any explanation behind its decision, one can assume that the radical call was made in light of the prevailing geo-political tensions between India and Pakistan. After the deadly terrorist attack that took place in Pahalgam in early 2025, India and Pakistan were engaged in a four-day cross-border conflict. Amidst severing ties, India-Pakistan cricketing relations got caught in the crossfire with players from both sides refusing to interact with each other at the 2025 Asia Cup in the UAE. The Indian team also refused to collect the 2025 Asia Cup trophy from controversial PCB chairman and ACC President Mohsin Naqvi. At the behest of the PCB, the ICC also arranged special scheduling arrangements for the Pakistan team by relocating their 2026 T20 World Cup matches to Sri Lanka. Despite fulfilling Pakistan’s request, the PCB and the Pakistan government pulled out of their India match to deprive the ICC of its big-ticket spectacle. T20 World Cup 2026 to launch on February 7 Despite Pakistan’s controversial pull out and Bangladesh’s late exclusion, the 2026 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup is set to be launched on February 7 with an exhilarating triple-header. The opening match of the tournament will be a cracking Group A fixture between Pakistan and Netherlands. The match will be hosted by the SSC Ground in Colombo and the action will commence from 11:00 AM IST onwards.