.jpg?type=hq)
Salman Ali Agha and his men boycotts - (Source : AFP)
In a significant development, Pakistan have decided to not boycott their upcoming Asia Cup 2025 against UAE despite initial plans to pull out of tournament. The Salman Ali Agha decided to not travel to the stadium, but after the PCB held a press conference, Mohsin Naqvi directed the players to go to Dubai International Stadium.
The match will now start at 9:00 pm as the players have been directed to travel to the Dubai International Stadium. However, there is still no confirmation on who the match referee will be for the upcoming clash.
Notably, there were lot of speculations regarding Pakistan not playing against UAE, because the ACC and ICC failed to adhere to their demand of removing Match referee Andy Pycrott. According to the reports, the PCB sent two letters to the ICC, but the Council reverted stating that they didn't find the referee to be guilty of any offence.
What Drama Unfolded That Led To Pakistan's Boycott
The issue started with India's refusal to shake hands against Pakistan after their heavyweight match against the Men in Green. The Salman Agha-led team were hurt by the gesture and the PCB lodged an official complaint regarding the same.
Further, the Mohsin Naqvi-led board demaned the removal of match referee from Asia Cup as they accused Andy Pycroft of not informing Pakistan regarding India's decision to not shake hands. Also, the report added that that it was Pycroft who had actually instructed both teams to not shake hands during the toss.
ICC refused to listen to PCB's demands, following which the board had threatened to pull out of the Asia Cup 2025 match against UAE. It followed with reports that the ICC might actually replace Pycroft for Pakistan games.
However, on Wednesday, September 17, Pakistan was set to travel to the stadium and a few players had also boarded the bus, but the PCB asked them to stay back in hotel and instead held a presser in Lahore, where they revealed the decision to pull out of the tournament.
