Sri Lanka Cricket wrote a letter to PCB as Pakistan government announced boycott of India game.
Sri Lanka Cricket has reportedly written a letter to the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) to change their mind about boycotting their Group A match against India, adding a new dimension to the controversy surrounding Pakistan's involvement in the ICC T20 World Cup 2026.
India and Pakistan are slated to clash on February 15 in Colombo, but the Pakistan government has announced that the Men in Green will not play this match to show solidarity with Bangladesh.
The Tigers were removed from the T20 World Cup 2026 by the ICC after their continuous refusal to travel to India for security reasons. This had come after Mustafizur Rahman of Bangladesh was removed by the KKR franchise from their IPL 2026 squad on orders from the BCCI, in response to ongoing atrocities against Hindu minorities in Bangladesh.
Bangladesh received support from only Pakistan, who play India on neutral venues in ICC and ACC events. They have since then received the go-ahead from their government to boycott their T20 World Cup 2026 game against India.
As a result, Sri Lanka Cricket President Shammi Silva has written to the Pakistan Cricket Board urging it to reconsider their stance against playing India in Colombo on February 15.
As per the newswire.lk, Sri Lanka Cricket stated that the country is looking forward to the event as a host nation, and that all commercial, operational, logistical, and security arrangements for matches assigned to Sri Lanka have already been resolved. This involves hospitality planning and the selling of match tickets.
The letter stated that ticket sales for matches in Sri Lanka, particularly the India-Pakistan match, had been concluded with extraordinarily high demand, demonstrating unprecedented public enthusiasm and big commercial expectations.
Sri Lanka Cricket has cautioned that failing to participate in a flagship event of this nature could have far-reaching consequences, including significant financial risk, the loss of projected tourism inflows, and broader economic ramifications.
According to Newswire, Sri Lanka's tourism and hotel industries have already suffered significantly as a result of Pakistan's alleged decision not to play the February 15 match in Colombo, with several hotel booking cancellations hitting various Colombo-based hotels.
According to industry sources, hotels had anticipated a significant increase in international tourists due to the high-profile fixture, and the cancellations have had a direct influence on occupancy forecasts during the World Cup period.
The communication also stated that Sri Lanka Cricket, along with the Sri Lankan government, is aware of the broader implications of a boycott, which might damage not only Sri Lanka Cricket but a wide range of stakeholders involved in ensuring the tournament's success.
"Yes, we have written a letter to the PCB. We tried to highlight things we have done for Pakistan cricket in their difficult times in the past. We expressed our concerns over their decision, as all the preparations have been done here for the match. We categorically told them that not only Sri Lankan cricket but we as a country are losing because of this decision. They are hurting Sri Lanka's economy. It will hurt tourism here in the country. Our economy will take a hit because of this one decision,” Bandula Dissanayake, secretary of SLC, told New Indian Express.
Sri Lanka Cricket recalled past co-operation in the letter, where the Sri Lankan team toured Pakistan when other teams didn’t, including periods marked by serious security incidents. It stated that these choices were made in good faith, with the spirit of sportsmanship and mutual respect between the two boards.
Sri Lanka Cricket stated that it expects the same spirit of reciprocity to exist, stressing that Sri Lanka has provided complete assurances of security, neutrality, and professionalism for all matches staged in the country.