PCB announces complete withdrawal from future WCL events

In a bold and principled move the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has announced a complete withdrawal from all future editions of the World Championship of Legends (WCL) condemning the tournament’s conduct as biased, politically influenced and contrary to the spirit of the game.

This decision was made during the PCB’s 79th Board of Governors (BoG) meeting, chaired virtually by the Board’s chairman Mohsin Naqvi following what the Board described as a “deeply disappointing and unacceptable” series of actions by WCL organizers including awarding points to a forfeiting team and releasing politically skewed statements around the cancelled India and Pakistan legends matches.

“Cricket should be a bridge, not a battleground,” the PCB said. “We cannot allow our legends to be part of events where the game is manipulated to serve selective narratives.”

The PCB expressed strong disapproval of WCL’s apparent double standards and the misuse of slogans like “peace through sport” to mask decisions rooted in political and commercial expediency. The WCL’s apology for “hurting sentiments,” the PCB noted, was performative and only confirmed that the tournament had bowed to nationalistic pressures rather than upholding sporting merit.

The Board emphasized that it has always stood firm on the principle that sports, particularly cricket, must remain independent of politics and propaganda.

Citing an alarming departure from fair play and neutrality the PCB declared it will not participate in any competition where the integrity of the sport is compromised by external agendas.

While reaffirming its commitment to promoting cricket globally and fostering meaningful rivalries the PCB concluded that its players and legacy cannot be part of a platform that undermines the values that cricket has long stood for mutual respect, fairness and the true spirit of sportsmanship.

The virtual BoG meeting was attended by: Sumair Ahmed Syed, Salman Naseer, Zaheer Abbas, Zahid Akhtar Zaman, Sajjad Ali Khokhar, Zafarullah Jadgal, Tanveer Ahmed, Tariq Sarwar, Muhammad Ismail Qureshi, Anwaar Ahmad Khan, Adnan Malik, Usman Wahla (special invitee), and Mir Hassan Naqvi (Additional Secretary).

Following Indian team drama when it skipped not only its league game against Pakistan but also refused to field in the semi-finals against the same oppositions Pakistan finished as runners-up when they were mauled by South Africa by nine wickets in the final thanks to AB Devillers century.