World Championship of Legends (WCL) Season 3 The match between India and Pakistan will no longer be played. Pakistan Champions officially withdrew from the tournament on Monday. Along with this, the India vs Pakistan match proposed on October 10 has also been cancelled.
The official reason for Pakistan’s exit from the tournament has been given as ‘unforeseen circumstances’. However, according to sources related to the development, the main reason behind this is the NOC of Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and the controversy that arose regarding the India-Pakistan match in the last season.
What happened regarding NOC?
Pakistan Champions needed No Objection Certificate i.e. NOC from PCB to participate in WCL Season 3. Initially the match between Pakistan and Bangladesh was postponed due to ‘technical reasons’. Since that time it was discussed that Pakistan team is waiting for NOC from PCB. According to sources, PCB agreed to issue NOC, but kept some conditions along with it. WCL organizers refused to accept these conditions, after which Pakistan decided to withdraw from the tournament.
Why did the issue of India come up in the terms of PCB?
According to sources, the major demands of PCB included a written apology from the Indian players for not playing the match against Pakistan last year. Apart from this, PCB wanted that this time there should be no objection regarding handshake between the players of India and Pakistan. That is, after the controversy that arose on the field last year, an effort was being made to ensure a normal atmosphere between the two teams this season.
However, WCL organizers reportedly acknowledged the commercial and organizational issues related to the tournament, but refused to accede to the Indian players’ demands for an apology and handshake.
What happened in the India-Pakistan match last year?
- In the last season of WCL, India had refused to play against Pakistan. This decision was taken amidst the atmosphere created after the Pahalgam terrorist attack.
- India-Pakistan match could not take place in the group stage. After this, even in the semi-final stage, the Indian team did not change its position of playing against Pakistan. As a result, Pakistan got a walkover and reached the final.
- However, Pakistan had to face defeat from South Africa in the final.
- Last season, there was a lot of discussion about handshake between the players of India and Pakistan.
- The same old controversy came to the fore again this year before the possible clash of the two teams in the WCL.
India-Pakistan match of October 10 will no longer take place
In the opening ceremony of WCL Season 3, the match between India and Pakistan was scheduled on 10 October. After Pakistan’s withdrawal, this match will no longer be played. WCL said in its official statement on Monday that Pakistan will not participate in Champions Season 3 and the tournament will now proceed with six teams. The organizers’ statement made no mention of the PCB’s conditions, the Indian players’ apology or the handshake controversy. WCL only cited ‘unforeseen circumstances’ as the reason for Pakistan’s withdrawal.
What did Pakistan Champions say?
- The alleged terms of the dispute were also not mentioned in the statement issued by Pakistan Champions.
- The team said that after PCB’s decision not to issue NOC, it will not be able to participate in the current WCL.
- The team talked about respecting the authority of PCB and its decision, but also said that it is disappointed with this decision as its players will not be able to represent Pakistan Champions in this international cricket event.
- Thus, the terms of apology and handshake have not been confirmed in the official statements made by PCB and WCL.
Shahid Afridi also did not reach with the team
Former Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi was to captain the Pakistan Champions this season, but he was not present in UAE during the proposed opening match against Bangladesh. After this, Pakistan was also to play a match against Australia on Monday, but that match was also canceled after the team withdrew from the tournament.
Pakistan Champions had reached the finals in both the previous editions of WCL and the team was the runner-up both times. He had a chance to win the title for the first time in 2026, but his campaign ended before it started amid the developments related to the India-Pakistan dispute and the NOC dispute. Now WCL Season 3 will go ahead with six teams, while the much-awaited India-Pakistan match proposed on October 10 will not be a part of the tournament.