The Shahbaz Sharif-appointed committee, led by Bilawal Bhutto, will convene on Thursday to make a decision regarding Pakistan’s participation in the World Cup in India. There are no signs that the committee will take a severe stance towards the World Cup, but it may ask for permission to have Babar Azam’s team undergo a security check in India before approving their participation in the event from October 5 to November 19. The committee, led by Pakistan’s foreign minister, is anticipated to request permission for a security delegation to tour the locations where the Pakistan team will compete from the International Cricket Council (ICC) and the hosts, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).
A top PCB official told Cricbuzz on Tuesday night that “a high-profile meeting will decide on the World Cup participation,” without going into further detail. Ahsan Mazari, the minister of sports, Maryam Aurangzeb, Asad Mahmood, Amin ul Haq, Qamar Zaman Kaira, and Tariq Fatmi, a former diplomat, are all members of the committee. Despite the ongoing wait for the World Cup schedule, sources inside the PCB claim that the BCCI has alerted the Pakistan board about a potential alteration in the schedule of a few games for its squad, one of which is the important game against India. Unconfirmed information implies that the India-Pakistan match could be moved up from October 14 to an earlier date. The match they are currently slated to play against the Netherlands on October 6 in Hyderabad could also be changed. There may not be any changes to the Pakistan-Sri Lanka encounter on October 12. The locations will stay the same, as BCCI secretary Jay Shah has already stated.
The final schedule is anticipated this week, according to sources with the BCCI and ICC, and four to six games may have their dates changed overall. The schedule for the ticket sales is anticipated this week, and Paytm Insider is anticipated to be granted the authorization to conduct the online ticket sales.