PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi invited to ICC meeting, IPL final in Ahmedabad

LAHORE: Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman Mohsin Naqvi has received an invitation to attend the International Cricket Council’s Board meeting as well as the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 final in Ahmedabad later this month.

The development comes as the ICC prepares to hold a series of meetings, including sessions of the Chief Executives Committee (CEC) and the Board, to continue discussions on the future of the World Test Championship (WTC), an international cricket news website reported.

The CEC meeting is scheduled to take place virtually on May 21, while the in-person Board meeting is set for May 30 and 31 in Ahmedabad. The IPL 2026 final is also due to be played on May 31 at the Narendra Modi Stadium in the same city.

Naqvi would ordinarily be expected to attend the Board meeting in person. However, strained ties between the governments of Pakistan and India, along with tensions between their cricket boards, had raised uncertainty over whether he would travel for the event.

Invitation forwarded to prime minister

Sources said the PCB chief has been invited to both the ICC Board meeting and the final of the IPL in Ahmedabad.

They added that Naqvi has forwarded the invitation to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, who will decide whether the PCB chairman will travel across the border to attend the meeting and the IPL final.

The meetings are part of the ICC’s quarterly schedule. They had originally been planned for March and April in Doha, Qatar, but were postponed because of conflicts in the region.

The upcoming ICC discussions are expected to revisit matters related to the World Test Championship, with the CEC and Board meetings forming part of that process.

No further official details were provided regarding the agenda beyond the resumption of discussions on the future of the WTC, nor was any formal announcement cited on whether Naqvi would attend in person.

The invitation is notable in the context of cricketing relations between Pakistan and India, which remain affected by broader tensions between the two countries as well as between their respective cricket boards.

For now, the decision on Naqvi’s possible visit rests with the prime minister after the invitation was sent onward for consideration, sources said.