ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) this week rejected an Indian journalist’s claim that it has approached the International Cricket Council (ICC) for a dialogue regarding Pakistan’s upcoming cricket fixture against India. 

Indian sports journalist Vikrant Gupta wrote on social media platform X on Saturday that the PCB has reached out to the ICC for dialogue over its decision to boycott the Feb. 15 T20 World Cup match against India. 

Gupta said the development took place after the ICC informed the PCB of the legal ramifications and potential sanctions the cricket governing body could impose if Pakistan boycotted its World Cup match against India. 

Gupta said the ICC was responding to the PCB, which had informed the global cricket governing body in writing that it was pulling out of the match as Pakistan’s government had not allowed the national team to play the Feb. 15 fixture. 

“I categorically reject the claim by Indian sports journalist Vikrant Gupta that PCB approached the ICC,” PCB spokesperson Amir Mir said in a statement on Saturday. 

“As usual, sections of Indian media are busy circulating fiction. A little patience and time will clearly show who actually went knocking and who didn’t.”

Pakistan’s government earlier this month cleared the team’s participation in the T20 World Cup but barred them from facing India in Colombo on Feb. 15.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif later said the decision was taken to express solidarity with Bangladesh, after it was replaced by the ICC in the ongoing tournament. 

ICC replaced Bangladesh with Scotland last month after the latter refused to play its World Cup matches in India due to security reasons. 

Pakistan has blamed India’s cricket board for influencing the ICC’s decisions. Defense Minister Khawaja Asif this week called for a the formation of a new cricket governing body, saying the ICC is now hostage to “India’s political interests.”

India generates the largest share of cricket’s commercial revenue and hence enjoys considerable influence over the sport. Critics argue that this financial contribution translates into decisive leverage within the ICC. 

A large part of that revenue comes from the Indian Premier League (IPL), the sport’s most lucrative T20 cricket competition, which is run by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). Between 2024 and 2027, the IPL is projected to earn $1.15 billion, nearly 39 percent of the ICC’s total annual revenue, according to international media reports. 

The ICC is headed by Jay Shah, the son of Indian Home Minister Amit Shah. The ICC chair is expected to be independent from any cricket board and take impartial decisions.