Pakistan threatened to boycott their Asia Cup 2025 group stage match against the UAE following the no-handshake controversy with the Indian team. Former PCB chief Najam Sethi has revealed the board’s mood after the controversy, as it contemplated a boycott.
The Asia Cup 2025 has been marred with controversy ever since the India vs Pakistan clash in the league stage. With India refusing a handshake with their Pakistani counterparts over the recent tensions between the two neighbours, following the Pahalgam terror attack and India’s retaliatory Operation Sindoor, the Pakistan Cricket Board has been miffed.ย
The PCB threatened to pull out of their league stage game against the UAE, which would have ultimately ended their Asia Cup campaign, in their protest against the match referee, Andy Pycroft. The Pakistani Board wanted the removal of Pycroft, as they accused him of denying the handshakes between the two captains at the toss.
However, the ICC rejected their demand and cleared him of having a role in the handshake-gate. PCB made a big drama on their match day against the UAE, first not sending their team to the ground, then eventually agreeing to play after a delayed start.
Meanwhile, the former PCB chairman, Najam Sethi, revealed the mood of the Pakistan Board on the day of the match when the board had contemplated a boycott.
“The decision was already taken. The mood was such that, ‘under public pressure, letโs boycott. Let the Asia Cup go to hell, let the ICC go to hell.’ My attitude has always been that you should stay within legal boundaries and not leave the international arena. When I was called, my friends told me, โDonโt go, donโt support him.โ I hadnโt gone to support Mr. Mohsin Naqvi. I went to help the Pakistan Cricket Board,” Sethi told Pakistanโs Samaa TV.
“If what he was attempting had succeeded, Pakistan would have suffered irreparable damage. We could have been sanctioned by the Asian Cricket Council (ACC), penalized by the International Cricket Council (ICC), foreign players might have refused to play in the PSL, and we stood to lose $15 million in ACC broadcasting rights. It would have been an existential crisis for PCB.