Bangladesh our brothers, hope they support us in T20 World Cup: Pakistan captain

Pakistan captain Salman Ali Agha on Thursday described Bangladesh as Pakistan's "brothers" and said he hoped Bangladeshi fans would continue to support the Men in Green in the ICC Men's T20 World Cup, even as he termed their absence from the tournament unfortunate.

Bangladesh were replaced by Scotland in the T20 World Cup 2026 after declining to travel to India for their scheduled matches. The International Cricket Council subsequently removed Bangladesh from the tournament and placed Scotland in Group C. The decision followed Bangladesh’s request to move their fixtures out of India, citing safety concerns amid rising regional tensions—a proposal the ICC rejected.

Pakistan, meanwhile, announced it will boycott its group-stage match against India on February 15 in Sri Lanka in support of Bangladesh. In an official statement, the Pakistani government confirmed its approval for the team’s participation in the tournament but stated that Pakistan “shall not take to the field” for the India fixture. The team has been cleared to play the remaining matches of the competition, which begins on February 7.

Speaking during the second session of the ICC captains' briefing, Agha thanked Bangladesh for backing Pakistan and expressed disappointment over their exclusion from the World Cup.

"Well, they are our brothers. Thank you very much to them for supporting us. It's really sad to see that they are not playing the World Cup. Hopefully, they can continue supporting us in the tournament as well," Agha said.

Reiterating his board's position, the Pakistan skipper stressed that the decision to boycott the India match was taken by the government and was beyond the team's control.

"The India game is not in our control. It's the government's and the PCB's decision, and we respect that. Whatever they decide, we will follow," he said.

Agha added that Pakistan would adopt the same approach if they were to face India again in the knockout stages.

"If we have to play them again in the semifinal or final, we will have to go back to them and act on their advice," he said.

During the press conference here, Agha was also reminded about Pakistan's embarrassing defeat to lesser-fancied USA in the last edition of the tournament in the Americas.

"Yes, we lost to the USA in the last World Cup, but that's history now. It's a new World Cup, a new team and a new combination, and we are very excited about it."

"It's my first World Cup as a captain, and I'm very excited about that. I don't know how to describe myself as a captain.

"As a captain, I just want to lead from the front and do as much as I can for the team, get the best out of the team, and prepare an environment where they can play at their best," Agha said.

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