ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday backed his government’s decision to bar the national men’s cricket team from playing against India in the upcoming T20 World Cup tournament, reaffirming support for Bangladesh. 

Pakistan’s government announced on social media platform X last week that it has allowed its national team to travel to Sri Lanka for the World Cup. However, it said the Green Shirts will not take the field against India on their scheduled match on Feb. 15. 

Pakistan’s participation in the tournament was thrown into doubt after Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman Mohsin Naqvi criticized the International Cricket Council (ICC) for replacing Bangladesh with Scotland. The decision was taken after Bangladesh said it would not let its team travel to India out of security concerns. 

During a meeting of the federal cabinet, Sharif highlighted that Pakistan has said that politics should be kept away from sports. 

“We have taken this stand after careful consideration and in this regard, we should stand fully with Bangladesh,” Sharif said in televised remarks. 

“And I believe this is a very reasonable decision.”

Pakistan has blamed India for influencing the ICC’s decisions. The global cricket governing body is currently led by Jay Shah, the head of the Board of Control for Cricket in India. Shah is the son of Indian Home Minister Amit Shah. 

Pakistan’s boycott announcement has triggered media frenzy worldwide, with several Indian cricket experts and analysts criticizing Islamabad for the decision. An India-Pakistan cricket contest is by far the most lucrative and eagerly watched match of any ICC tournament. 

The ICC has ensured that the two rivals and Asian cricket giants are always in the same group of any ICC event since 2012 to capitalize on the high-stakes game. 

The two teams have played each other at neutral venues over the past several years, as bilateral cricket remains suspended between them since 2013 due to political tensions. 

Those tensions have persisted since the two nuclear-armed nations engaged in the worst fighting between them since 1999 in May 2025, after India blamed Pakistan for an attack in Indian-administered Kashmir that killed tourists. 

Pakistan denied India’s allegations that it was involved in the attack, calling for a credible probe into the incident.