THE FOG of war can make it difficult to understand what is happening during a conflict. Sometimes that murkiness can persist long after the guns have fallen silent. That is proving true of the four-day skirmish between India and Pakistan that took place last May.

ICC urged Pakistan Cricket Board to re-evaluate the call and hinted at long-term implications if they go forward with the boycott.

T20 World Cup: Pakistan have decided to boycott their group stage match against India in Colombo. But can they afford to waste a game when two of their other matches are threatened by rain?

The two countries have stepped up ties since the removal of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina from power in 2024

Pakistani police and military forces have killed over 100 "Indian-backed terrorists" in Balochistan, according to government officials

ICC has reportedly asked deputy chair Imran Khwaja to hold back-channel talks with PCB after Pakistan government ordered a boycott of the India match at T20 World Cup 2026.

Pakistan are unlikely to change its stance, and the boycott of the T20 World Cup match against India is firmly on the cards.

For New Delhi, the deal is a strategic breakthrough that aligns trade with geopolitics. For Islamabad and Dhaka, it threatens to dismantle decades of hard-won advantage built on special trade regimes rather than competitiveness.