Speaking after Pakistan’s third T20I against Australia, Agha confirmed that while Pakistan will participate in the remainder of the tournament, the squad will strictly follow instructions issued by the government and the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).
“Yes, absolutely, we will go. But that is not our decision, sir, and we cannot do anything about it. Whatever our government and our chairman instruct us to do, we have to follow,” Agha said, stressing that players’ personal views are irrelevant when national directives are involved.
On Sunday, the Government of Pakistan formally announced that the national team would take part in the T20 World Cup but would not play the February 15 group-stage fixture against arch-rivals India, a decision that has triggered widespread debate due to the rivalry’s sporting and commercial significance.
The controversy stems from the ICC’s recent decision to remove Bangladesh from the tournament after they declined to play matches in India over security concerns. With Bangladesh standing by their position, the ICC replaced them with Scotland.
Pakistan were scheduled to face India on February 15 at the R. Premadasa Stadium in Colombo, with all of their group-stage matches set to be played in Sri Lanka, a co-host of the tournament alongside India.
