Pakistan's Women's Cricket Team Will Not Go to India for Women's World Cup

Key Takeaways

Pakistan's women's cricket team will not travel to India for the World Cup.
The decision is based on a mutual agreement between PCB and BCCI.
India will host the 2025 ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup.
Matches will occur at neutral venues if necessary.
Political tensions have historically affected cricket between the two nations.

Islamabad, April 19 (NationPress) The Chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and the country’s Interior Minister, Mohsin Naqvi, has confirmed that Pakistan’s women's cricket team will not travel to India for the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup scheduled for later this year.

This announcement follows Pakistan's successful qualification for the ICC Women’s World Cup 2025, achieved by defeating Thailand in the Women’s World Cup Qualifier by 87 runs. PCB Chairman Mohsin Naqvi expressed his delight for the women's cricket team on their qualification but reiterated that they will not be traveling to India.

“The Pakistan team will not travel to India for the World Cup. It is now up to India to determine where our matches will be held. Our team will play at any venue other than India,” he stated.

India is set to host the 2025 ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup in September, featuring eight teams, six of which have already qualified. Matches will take place across five cities, concluding with the final in Mullanpur, near Chandigarh.

When questioned about the reasons for the team's inability to travel to India for the World Cup, he responded: “This is part of the agreement and the hybrid model. India must adhere to it, just as we did during the Champions Trophy,” he added.

It is important to highlight that while India is the host nation for the ICC Women’s World Cup 2025, Pakistan’s matches will not be played there. This decision stems from a mutual agreement between the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) established prior to the Champions Trophy 2025.

At that time, India declined to travel to Pakistan for their matches. Despite protests from Pakistan to the ICC (International Cricket Council), it was agreed that neutral venues would be used for matches involving the Indian cricket team, under the condition that if the PCB accepted the hybrid model, it would also apply to matches in India. During the ICC Champions Trophy 2025, the Indian cricket team played its matches in Dubai in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Additionally, it is crucial to note that cricket matches between India and Pakistan have required approvals from their respective governments for many years due to ongoing political tensions.