India vs Pakistan cancelled: Full list of ICC tournament matches that were boycotted by teams
Published - 02 Feb 2026, 10:36 AM | Updated - 02 Feb 2026, 11:34 PM
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The highly anticipated India vs Pakistan T20 World Cup 2026 match has been put on hold as the Pakistan government asked the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) to boycott the fixture. Pakistan's decision to boycott the high-octane encounter was at the exit of the Bangladesh cricket team from the tournament.
A tense geopolitical environment might have influenced the snub of Bangladesh. In protest of the ICC decision, only Pakistan came forward and threatened a boycott of the whole tournament. After discussions with the government and the Pakistan cricket officials, Pakistan suggested only boycotting their group stage match against Pakistan, which is scheduled to take place on February 15 in Colombo, which is a neutral venue between India and Pakistan.
Why did Pakistan decide to boycott the India vs Pakistan T20 World Cup 2026 match?
Pakistan's decision to boycott the India match has come as a surprise, though it was a predictable move. Multiple media reports previously suggested that PCB could say 'Yes' to the T20 World Cup 2026 but 'No' to their group match against India.
It is not the first time that a team has pulled itself out of a specific match. In the history of the Cricket World Cup, there are multiple instances when teams refused to play for sudden reasons.
List of ICC tournament matches that were boycotted by teams:
1. ODI World Cup 2003, England does not travel to Zimbabwe:
The England cricket team, captained by Nasser Hussain, opted not to travel to Zimbabwe to play their World Cup match in Harare because of political tensions. The government of Zimbabwe's stance forced the England cricket team to think about their safety in that nation. It was reported that the team received death threats leading up to the match.
Because of the out-of-the-field pressure situation, England did not travel to Zimbabwe. After that, Zimbabwe was awarded the fixture by walkover, and England was knocked out of the tournament as they fell short by only two points.
2. ODI World Cup 2003, New Zealand does not travel to Kenya:
In the same tournament, along with England, New Zealand also confronted almost a similar situation in the tournament. New Zealand Cricket (NZC) stated, "We received strong information that there are active terrorist organizations currently operating in Nairobi that have the means and capability of launching a terrorist attack" before forfeiting their match with Kenya.
A walkover was awarded to Kenya, though New Zealand would manage to qualify for the next round anyway. For the first time in history, Kenya made their way to the semis of the World Cup.
3. World Cup 1996: Australia and the West Indies do not travel to Sri Lanka:
The Australia and West Indies cricket teams stayed in Mumbai and refused to travel to Sri Lanka after the Colombo Bank bombing incident, which took 91 lives and left many injured. Both of the teams had no objection to the Sri Lanka cricket team; their major concern was the security in the island nation.
Sri Lanka was awarded both matches by walkover, but all three sides would progress to the next round. The bomb blast incident happened two weeks before the tournament.
Read More: Pakistan says YES to T20 World Cup but NO to India clash; boycott ROCKS global cricket
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