The Pakistan Cricket Board has agreed to reconsider its decision to boycott the February 15 match against India in the T20 World Cup, sources told The Telegraph.
This follows a tripartite meeting between the PCB, International Cricket Council and Bangladesh Cricket Board in Lahore on Sunday afternoon. Aminul Islam, president of the BCB, arrived there for the tripartite conclave, which also included ICC’s deputy chair Imran Khwaja and executive board member Mubashir Usmani.
PCB chief Mohsin Naqvi hosted all the ICC board members in his chamber at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore. The meeting lasted till late evening, but the details were not revealed.
PCB is understood to have sought time till Monday to revert with their final decision on the high-profile match in Colombo.
The BCB president’s presence is a result of the PCB’s continued show of solidarity towards them since Bangladesh was removed from the tournament for refusing to play in India citing security issues. The ICC had turned down BCB’s request to play their matches in Sri Lanka and replaced Bangladesh with Scotland in the 20-team tournament.
Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif cited it as the reason his government had asked its team not to play their game against India.
Naqvi, who is also an interior minister in the Pakistan government, is likely to consult Sharif before making any public statement on the issue.
The final outcome is still under wraps, but the fact that PCB has decided to discuss and reconsider its stance is a positive sign in itself.
The PCB had initiated a formal dialogue with the ICC after it wrote to the world body about their boycott and invoked the force majeure clause.
The ICC questioned the legitimacy of the move, citing the evidentiary threshold required for non-participation. The world body also outlined the sporting, commercial, and governance implications in the event of a boycott.
As reported by The Telegraph earlier, the PCB has set a few conditions for a reversal of their decision, including a higher share of ICC revenue.
It has also reportedly demanded that the India-Pakistan match be played in the right spirts, with the return of the handshake protocol. The PCB is also learnt to have made it clear that the ICC shouldn’t impose any sanctions on the BCB.
Sri Lanka Cricket had recently written to the PCB, urging them to reconsider its decision since any boycott would lead to significant financial losses for the co-hosts. It had also highlighted how it had supported PCB on previous occasions when teams were reluctant to tour their country because of security-related issues.
The ICC had earlier issued a strong statement reminding the PCB of the potential consequences of the boycott, though it didn’t mention any of the sanctions which could follow.
The world body had kept the doors open for negotiations while making clear that selective participation in the World Cup will not be acceptable to maintain the sanctity of the tournament.