ICC’s Deputy Chairman Imran Khawaja arrives in Lahore to hold meeting with PCB

By Alam Zeb Safi
LAHORE: The International Cricket Council (ICC) Deputy Chairman Imran Khawaja has also arrived in Lahore to hold meeting with the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) to discuss the India game boycott standoff.
Imran Khawaja was received at the Allama Iqbal International Airport by the PCB senior officials.
Earlier the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) President and former Test cricketer Aminul Islam arrived in Punjab capital on Sunday morning to also attend the emergency meeting between the ICC and PCB.
Islam is also scheduled to meet Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman Mohsin Naqvi during his visit, the sources added.
Islam flew out of Dhaka for Lahore at 1am last night. And after attending the meeting which will be both virtual and physical he is scheduled to fly Dhaka back in the evening.
The ICC meeting will discuss the standoff over Pakistan’s decision to boycott its World Cup match against India, scheduled for February 15. Pakistan has confirmed participation in the rest of the tournament which began on Saturday in India and Colombo.
Pakistan in their opener on Saturday downed Netherlands by three wickets after a tense battle at Colombo.
Pakistan announced the boycott on February 1 through a government social media post, shortly after completing a clean sweep of Australia in a three-match Twenty20 international series in Lahore.
The decision was taken in solidarity with Bangladesh which was excluded from the World Cup after the ICC Executive Board rejected its request to relocate its matches from India to Sri Lanka over security concerns. The ICC board voted 14–2 against Bangladesh, which was subsequently replaced by Scotland.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif later defended the decision, calling it “well thought out.”
“We have taken a clear stand relating to the T20 World Cup that we will not play our game against India,” Sharif told a cabinet meeting.
“Sports should not be mixed with politics, and in this matter we should stand by Bangladesh completely.”
The ICC faces significant financial implications if Pakistan does not play India, as the fixture is among the tournament’s most lucrative. The governing body is seeking an amicable resolution, according to sources familiar with the matter.
Sri Lanka Cricket, a co-host of the World Cup, has also urged Pakistan to reconsider its decision, warning that a boycott would cause financial losses and hurt Sri Lanka’s tourism industry, which is still recovering from an economic crisis.
In a letter to the PCB, Sri Lanka Cricket said it had supported Pakistan in the past when few teams were willing to tour the country.
Australia and West Indies did not travel to Sri Lanka during the 1996 World Cup, England skipped matches in Zimbabwe during the 2003 tournament on its government’s nod and New Zealand refused to play in Nairobi in the same World Cup due to security fears. England in 2009 World Cup did not issue visas to Zimbabwe cricketers.
No punitive action was taken in those cases.
Pakistan’s stance remains unchanged for now, though sources say discussions are ongoing and diplomatic efforts are under way to resolve the issue.