Just hours before Pakistan agreed to play its T20 World Cup match against India on February 15, its cricket board chief Mohsin Naqvi stirred another row by invoking field marshal Asim Munir while declaring that neither he nor his government was intimidated by what he called “threats” from India and the ICC. Pakistan Cricket Board finally agreed to play the match on Monday after weeks of drama, boycott threats and back-and-forth negotiations involving the Pakistan government, the ICC and multiple cricket boards.
Naqvi, who is also Pakistan’s interior minister, brought the military leadership into the conversation, a move that analysts feel is an attempt to turn a cricket dispute into a civil–military signal. Speaking at a press conference on February 15, during the deadlock, Naqvi said Pakistan stood firm and unafraid of pressure.
“Neither am I intimidated by the threats from India and the ICC, nor is the Government of Pakistan, and as for Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir, you already know about him, he never gets afraid,” Naqvi said.
Why Mohsin Naqvi brought in Asim Munir's name
Field marshal Asim Munir is a prominent military figure in Pakistan's recent history. In May 2025, following intense border hostilities with India after Operation Sindoor - India’s strikes against terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir - Islamabad’s cabinet promoted General Munir to Field Marshal, the country’s highest military rank, only the second in history after Ayub Khan.
{{/usCountry}}Field marshal Asim Munir is a prominent military figure in Pakistan's recent history. In May 2025, following intense border hostilities with India after Operation Sindoor - India’s strikes against terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir - Islamabad’s cabinet promoted General Munir to Field Marshal, the country’s highest military rank, only the second in history after Ayub Khan.
{{/usCountry}}The elevation came after Pakistan’s own assessment of the conflict, which Islamabad described as a test of its defence resolve. Munir’s leadership during the 2025 India–Pakistan engagements was publicly highlighted by Pakistani officials and used domestically as a symbol of strength.
Operation Sindoor was launched by India on May 7, 2025, targeting terror camps linked to groups like Jaish-e-Mohammed and Lashkar-e-Taiba after a deadly terror attack in the Pahalgam region of India's Jammu and Kashmir. The operation triggered four days of intense military exchanges before both sides agreed to pause hostilities.
While Indian officials later criticised Pakistan’s narrative internationally, Islamabad’s leadership continued to highlight Munir’s role as a rallying point of national resolve.
According to senior government officials cited by local media outlets, Naqvi's decision to name Field Marshal Asim Munir was seen as more than rhetorical bravado. Officials described it as a deliberate signal that the matter had moved beyond sport into the realm of state and civil–military positioning.
PCB makes U-turn after government consultations
Despite the earlier hard line and boycott signals, the PCB later reversed course. Following consultations led by Pakistan prime minister Shehbaz Sharif with multiple stakeholders - including cricket boards from Sri Lanka, the UAE and Bangladesh - the government directed the national team to take the field against India as scheduled in Colombo on February 15.
Also read: How weeks of India boycott threats quietly gave way to T20 World Cup talks
An official government statement said the decision was taken after multilateral discussions and requests from “friendly countries,” and framed the move as necessary to protect the spirit and continuity of international cricket.
The ICC also confirmed that its mediation meetings in Lahore with PCB and BCB officials were “open, constructive and congenial,” and said no penalties would be imposed on Bangladesh over the wider participation dispute.