![Mohsin Naqvi gives death stare from the stands [Source: X]](https://onecricketnews.akamaized.net/parth-editor/oc-dashboard/news-images-prod/1771219642014_MohsinNaqvigivesdeathstarefromthestandsinColombo.jpg?type=hq)
Mohsin Naqvi gives death stare from the stands [Source: X]
Pakistan Cricket Board chief Mohsin Naqvi faced a disastrous moment after Pakistan lost their group-stage clash against India at the T20 World Cup 2026. Pakistan’s early defeat potentially caused Mohsin Naqvi to lose face in front of the world after the earlier decision to boycott India.
For the unaware, Pakistan, while chasing India's 175 inside 20 overs, was wrapped up for just 114 runs in 18 overs. The chase never gained momentum, with the top order collapsing at the very beginning. Hence, Pakistan’s downfall began early, even though they won the toss and chose to bowl first.
Mohsin Naqvi Loses Face After Pakistan’s Defeat
PCB chief Mohsin Naqvi felt severely humiliated by Pakistan's loss, especially since they earlier appeared to have the upper hand with government directives.
After Bangladesh's ouster as a sign of solidarity and protest, the Pakistan cricket team wanted to boycott the February 15 clash against India. On February 1, the Pakistan government announced through its official social media handle that Pakistan would not be participating and taking the field on February 15.
This threw the cricketing world into chaos, with the International Cricket Council negotiating with the PCB. However, after a week of no movement, a tripartite meeting was held between the BCB, ICC, and the PCB, which led to a solution as Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif agreed to allow the team to play against India.
Nevertheless, it was allegedly believed that Mohsin Naqvi had been behind these developments since he also serves as the Interior Minister in the Pakistan government along with being the PCB chief. Hence, for him, Pakistan losing against India would have been a slap in the face.
Humiliated Naqvi At The Stands
Incidentally, Naqvi was seen meeting the Pakistan cricket team on match day. The optics appeared to benefit him, as he was seen interacting with the cricketers in what seemed like an attempt to uplift political and cricketing ties.
However, after Pakistan came in to bat, Mohsin Naqvi allegedly left the stadium when Pakistan were six wickets down. Seeing Pakistan struggle, Naqvi reportedly exited the venue.
A viral video of Naqvi has circulated widely, showing the Asian Cricket Council head attending the match from a pavilion at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo.
Naqvi was also seen giving a thumbs-up and posing with a smile for the cameras as they panned towards him before he gave a death stare to the players on the field.
The India Domination At Colombo
Nevertheless, India’s domination completely unsettled Pakistan. Even though Abhishek Sharma lost his wicket early for a duck, Ishan Kishan took charge and scored a blistering 77 off 40 deliveries.
Tilak Varma and Suryakumar Yadav later chipped in with 25 and 32 runs respectively. Shivam Dube and Rinku Singh also played quick, aggressive knocks to take India’s total to 175 for seven wickets.
Pakistan, however, struggled from the very beginning, with only Usman Khan top-scoring with 44 runs. Although Shaheen Afridi remained unbeaten at the end, the target was too steep to recover from, as Pakistan eventually lost the match by 61 runs.
