Pakistan Refuses to Play Cricket World Cup Hosted by India

KARACHI – According to a statement from the foreign ministry, Pakistan’s participation in the forthcoming 50-over World Cup in India is currently being evaluated.

In the previous ten years, only multi-team events involving neutral locations have taken place due to the deteriorating diplomatic ties between Pakistan and India. As a result, uncertainty surrounds Pakistan’s participation in the World Cup, which will be held in India from October to November.

For a Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit held in Goa, India’s Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari recently paid a crucial visit. A prominent Pakistani leader has not visited India for nine years prior to this visit.

The spokesman for the foreign ministry, Mumtaz Zahra Baloch, reiterated Pakistan’s opinion that politics and sports should be kept apart and expressed dissatisfaction over India’s decision to boycott cricket matches in Pakistan.

The security situation for Pakistani cricketers is one of many aspects of their World Cup participation that the Pakistani government is carefully watching and evaluating. The Pakistan Cricket Board will be informed of the opinions and analysis gathered when it is appropriate. Even though the World Cup is less than three months away, the official dates and locations have not yet been determined due to the uncertainty surrounding Pakistan’s participation.

The Asia Cup, which is set to start on August 31, has also been refused by India’s participation. Pakistan has responded by threatening to abstain from the World Cup if they are not given the opportunity to host the Asia Cup.

The Asian Cricket Council has suggested a “hybrid model” for the regional competition in an effort to reach a consensus. In accordance with this plan, four games will be played in Pakistan and the remaining nine in Sri Lanka. This model has been met with criticism from both India and Sri Lanka. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has said that it will not send its team to Pakistan, while Sri Lanka Cricket has stated that they are still unsure of their participation. As a result, the 2019 Asia Cup remains in limbo.