India vs Pakistan bilateral series incoming? PCB chairman breaks silence

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Mohsin Naqvi has finally broken his silence after days of rumors and political drama around the T20 World Cup 2026. Mohsin Naqvi has made it clear that Pakistan did not push for any personal benefit during its recent meeting with the ICC in Lahore.

Mohsin Naqvi breaks the silence after T20 World Cup 2026 drama

Speaking in Peshawar on Tuesday (February 10), the PCB chairman said that the only reason for the talks was to stand up for Bangladesh. His statement came just a day after the Pakistan government allowed the national team to play against India in the Group A match on February 15 in Colombo.

Before this late-night announcement on Monday, there were reports that Pakistan had placed conditions in front of the ICC. Some reports even claimed that PCB demanded the resumption of the bilateral cricket with India, including matches in the ICC World Test Championship cycle.

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It was also reported that this could have been the first step toward reviving the India-Pakistan bilateral series after more than a decade. However, Naqvi has strongly denied all such claims. He said the discussions with the ICC were only about the unfair treatment towards Bangladesh.

PCB denies bilateral India-Pakistan series demands

As quoted by the Hindustan Times, Mohsin Naqvi said, “We did not discuss anything apart from Bangladesh. Our only purpose was to get respect for Bangladesh and highlight the injustice done to them,” Naqvi said. “And you saw that whatever demands Bangladesh made were accepted. That’s it.”

Furthermore, the PCB chairman has insisted that Pakistan had no hidden agenda and no personal demands. Many have been trolling Pakistan for eventually surrendering to the ICC, but Naqvi stressed that Bangladesh’s demands were demands, so there was no reason for them to boycott the India game.

Naqvi further explained, “We had no personal interest in the meeting. Our task was purely related to Bangladesh. The government took its decision on that basis. When their demands were accepted and it was acknowledged that injustice was done to them, we decided to play.”

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ICC softens stand on Bangladesh; report hints at secret concessions to Pakistan

The Pakistan government’s decision to allow the team to play against India was taken after the ICC responded to the Bangladesh issue. The ICC released a statement just minutes before Pakistan confirmed its participation in the T20 World Cup 2026 group match with India.

In that statement, the global body called Bangladesh’s absence from the World Cup “unfortunate” and confirmed that the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) would not face any punishment. The ICC also announced that Bangladesh would be given hosting rights for an event in the 2028–31 cycle, most likely the men’s Under-19 World Cup.

This was seen as a major step to make up for the situation. However, the ICC statement did not mention any demands from Pakistan. At the same time, another report claimed that the ICC may have offered some concessions to Pakistan to ensure they did not pull out of the India match. The details of those possible concessions are expected to be revealed soon.