Pakistani Players Granted Permission to Play in India: A Major Government Decision

New Delhi: India’s relations with Pakistan are currently extremely strained, a situation that frequently leads to disputes between the cricket teams of both nations. Consequently, neither the Indian team travels to Pakistan nor does the Pakistani team visit India for international events. Amidst this backdrop, the Indian government has taken a significant decision, granting permission for Pakistani players to enter and play in India. According to the Indian government, Pakistani players are permitted to visit India and participate in international events hosted within the country, provided that such events involve the participation of multiple nations.

What Did the Indian Government Say?
The Indian government stated, “Pakistani players will be able to participate in events hosted by India. However, the Indian team will not travel to Pakistan to play.” This implies that Pakistani players will be granted permission to visit India only for multi-nation tournaments hosted in the country—such as the Asia Cup or the World Cup. “There will be no matches between India and Pakistan in bilateral events.”

Controversy Surrounding the Champions Trophy and T20 World Cup
It is worth noting that, in the recent past, neither India nor Pakistan traveled to the other’s country to participate in two major ICC tournaments. Pakistan held the hosting rights for the Champions Trophy; however, the Indian team played its matches in the UAE. Similarly, for the 2026 T20 World Cup—which was hosted by India—the Pakistani team did not travel to India. Instead, Pakistan played all its matches in Sri Lanka. Consequently, the Indian team had to travel to Sri Lanka to play its match against Pakistan. Given this context, the question of whether the Pakistani team will now actually visit India remains a major point of uncertainty. As per the current situation, such a visit appears highly unlikely.