Fear of heavy sanctions from ICC may force PCB to play in Asia Cup despite press conference cancellation

Whether Pakistan will boycott the Asia Cup 2025 remains the biggest question now, following the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) rejection of their request to act against match referee Andy Pycroft. However, a report states that while the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) is yet to make a final decision, it’s highly unlikely that the Men In Green will pull out of the Asia Cup, as they fear a heavy backlash from the Jay Shah-led ICC.

The whole drama started when PCB complained against Pycroft, alleging that he instructed India and Pakistan captains to avoid handshakes during the toss of the match that took place last Sunday. Pakistan had even stated that they would boycott their next match against the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Wednesday if their demand is not met.

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However, ICC was quick to reject their demand by Monday night, claiming that the instruction to Pycroft for asking Salman Ali Agha and Suryakumar Yadav to avoid handshakes came from Asian Cricket Council (ACC) officials. Now ACC is headed by PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi.

PCB fear heavy sanctions from Jay Shah-led ICC

Naqvi, who is also Pakistan’s interior minister, reportedly travelled from Lahore to Islamabad on Tuesday night to discuss with the government Pakistan’s next step. PCB is livid with India refusing to shake hands with Pakistan players after their match and with ICC rejecting their complaint, but they fear pulling out of the tournament may result in a massive loss for the Pakistan board.

A PCB source told Times of India that a withdrawal from the Asia Cup could result in a massive financial punishment from the Jay Shah-led ICC, which could be hugely detrimental to cricket in the country.

“If we do that, ICC led by Jay Shah will put heavy sanctions on the PCB, and this is something our board cannot afford. The financial situation post the Champions Trophy, where all the stadiums were renovated, is not good,” the source told TOI.

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Meanwhile, Pakistan cancelled their scheduled pre-match press-conference at the ICC Cricket Academy in Dubai on Tuesday. A source told news agency PTI that the press conference was cancelled as players and the team wanted to avoid questions over their threat to withdraw from the tournament, as PCB has still not made up its mind.

Nonetheless, Pakistan will likely play the match against the UAE, and victory in that game would help them set up another match against India next Sunday.