Najam Sethi called Afghanistan hypocritical: Afghanistan has been one of the best teams in world cricket. They showcased their talent since the 2023 ODI World Cup, where they defeated big teams like England and Pakistan to secure their first ICC Champions Trophy berth. Afghanistan has always had good relations with India and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).
Over the past few years, many Afghan cricketers have been representing for various franchises in the Indian Premier League (IPL). After playing so much franchise cricket in India, he has got love and respect for himself. Afghanistan Cricket Board has received a lot of help from BCCI in terms of cricket and revenue generation. This has raised serious questions for Pakistan, which earlier had good relations with Afghans.
Najam Sethi criticized Afghanistan cricket
India and Pakistan are at loggerheads following Pakistan’s decision to boycott the games against their arch-rivals. Pakistan, which did not get any support for its stand from other members of the board, seems to be sinking itself. Meanwhile, speaking to Dunya News, former Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Najam Sethi has criticized the Afghanistan board for always supporting BCCI.
Najam Sethi highlighted how Pakistan helped the Afghans when they had no funds and played a series to generate them. Had earlier criticized BCCI for ‘bullying’ Pakistan and their strained relations with Indian cricket and ICC.
‘He always supported BCCI in ICC meetings’- Najam Sethi
Former PCB chairman Najam Sethi said, “The Afghanistan Cricket Board reached out to me and said, ‘We don’t have the money. Please play the series with us.’ We played a T20 series with them in Sharjah and gave them all the revenue. Despite all this, he always supported BCCI in ICC meetings.
Afghan cricketers love to come to India and play the game here. Players and fans look at India as a second home. Earlier, India had allowed Afghanistan to use venues such as Greater Noida and Lucknow for “home” matches during tensions in their home countries. They used the Shaheed Vijay Singh Pathik Sports Complex in Greater Noida and the Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium in Dehradun for the series against New Zealand.
The India vs Pakistan dispute is moving towards a resolution after the ICC emergency meeting on Sunday, which was virtually attended by Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) chief Aminul Islam along with Mohsin Naqvi in Lahore. ICC vice-president Imran Khawaja is acting as a mediator to end the dispute.
Mohsin Naqvi will meet the PM of Pakistan
The final decision on the much-awaited India vs Pakistan match in the ICC T20 World Cup 2026 is to come on February 12. ICC had given time till February 9 to Pakistan to clarify its position. However, with sources saying no breakthrough is expected today, the decision is likely to be taken later this week.
Mohsin Naqvi will meet Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif today and brief him about the recent talks and seek advice on the next steps. Since the final decision is completely dependent on the approval of the Prime Minister of Pakistan.
Also read: Mohsin Naqvi in trouble! Bangladesh Cricket Board joins hands with ICC to end India vs Pakistan controversy
