Pakistan’s participation in the 2023 ICC ODI World Cup which will be held in India is being discussed by the country’s foreign office. There had been no clarity so far on Pakistan taking part in the ICC event with former Pakistan Cricket Board chairman Najam Sethi once also announcing that the Men in Green would take part in the tournament in India.
On Friday, however, the Pakistan Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that they are evaluating its team’s participation in the World Cup. The lack of clarity on Pakistan’s participation has also led to a delay in the announcement of the World Cup fixtures.
“We have received the official invitation from the Indian prime minister to our prime minister for the virtual meeting of the heads of state of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation that is due to take place on the 4th of July,” Mumtaz Zahra Baloch, a spokesperson of the Pakistan Ministry of Foreign Affairs was quoted as saying by ESPNCricinfo.
“Pakistan will be represented at the summit. We will be making an announcement regarding our participation in the coming days.
“Regarding cricket, Pakistan is of the view that politics should not be mixed with sports. India’s policy of not playing cricket in Pakistan is disappointing. We are observing and evaluating all aspects relating to our participation in the World Cup including the security situation for Pakistani cricketers and we will offer our views to PCB in due course.”
Pakistan’s participation in the World Cup is subject to approval by their government.
As per the draft schedule, the World Cup is scheduled to start on 5 October while India and Pakistan are expected to face off against each other on 15 October in Ahmedabad.
Meanwhile, PCB also requested to change their venues for two group matches, a request which has been turned down by ICC and BCCI.
Pakistan who play Australia in Bengaluru on 20 October and Afghanistan in Chennai on 23 October wanted the venues to be swapped.
Pakistan cricket team’s last visit to India came in 2016 for the T20 World Cup during which also the India vs Pakistan contest had to be shifted from Dharamsala to Kolkata due to security reasons.
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