Sports unite the entire country. In Nepal, the Nepali national cricket team, playing the 'Unity Cup' against the West Indies, brought hope and unity to a country that had been in a difficult situation due to the chaotic politics and natural disasters following the Gen-G movement.

The Twenty20 World Cup, which is set to begin in India this week, was expected to create a festive atmosphere not only in Nepal but also in the entire South Asia. The much-awaited World Cup, in which Nepal is also participating, is currently overshadowed by relations between neighboring countries and geopolitical conflicts. 

World cricket has probably never had to go through such a difficult situation before. Cricket is considered a 'religion' in South Asia, and the same game has now become the 'epicenter' of controversy. The bitter relations between the countries known for cricket have not only caused a crisis in world cricket, but the Twenty20 World Cup, which has become popular in a short time, has been overshadowed.

Even though there are only three days left for the official opening, it is still not certain in what situation the Twenty20 World Cup will start and how it will end. Sports analysts are worried that this will also reduce the enthusiasm of cricket fans for the World Cup.

Pakistan, one of the powers of world cricket, has further disappointed cricket fans after deciding not to play the scheduled match against India in the group stage of the World Cup on Sunday. India and Pakistan are in Group 'A'. The two countries do not have good political relations. However, the match between these two on the cricket field is considered to be the most exciting competition in world cricket. However, the recent decision of the Pakistan government not to play India will deprive cricket fans of watching the exciting competition between these two countries. This is sure to affect the excitement of the World Cup.

This time, the work of dragging the World Cup into controversy started with the Indian Premier League (IPL). The seeds of controversy were sown when the IPL franchise team Kolkata Knight Riders removed Bangladeshi fast bowler Mustafizur Rahman from its team under the direction of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). The same Mustafizur was bought by Kolkata in December for $ 1 million in a mega auction.

India took this decision against the backdrop of the oppression of minorities in Muslim-majority Bangladesh. In 2024, after the people's movement in Dhaka, the Prime Minister of Bangladesh, Sheikh Hasina, who is close to India, was ousted. Hasina has since taken refuge in India. This has led to a chill in political relations between India and Bangladesh. India's foreign minister last month condemned what he called the continued hostility towards minorities in Muslim-majority Bangladesh.

After the decision to drop Mustafizur from the IPL team, Bangladesh refused to play the Twenty20 World Cup in India, citing security reasons, and requested to shift its match to Sri Lanka. With the group stage matches scheduled to be played in Kolkata and Mumbai already on sale, the International Cricket Council (ICC) was in no position to accept Bangladesh's request.

The ICC had refused to shift the match to Sri Lanka, saying that Bangladesh's security challenge claims were not credible. After all, Bangladesh had fought a battle with the world's highest cricket body that it could not win.

The ICC then decided to expel Bangladesh from the World Cup, a decision that is sure to have a long-lasting impact on its cricket team. In the immediate future, Bangladesh has already lost the $500,000 it received for participating in the World Cup. Its ranking will also be affected in the future and Bangladesh may have to play a qualifier in the upcoming World Cup. Bangladesh did not want to listen to the repeated requests of the ICC and took a harsh decision.

The ICC has included Scotland in the Twenty20 World Cup in place of Bangladesh due to its higher ranking. Since participation was confirmed only 15 days before the start of the tournament, Scotland has reached India without a ‘kit’ sponsor. This is not the first such incident for the ICC and Scotland.

Earlier, England had refused to play in Zimbabwe, one of the hosts in 2003, protesting the dictatorial tendencies of President Roberto Mugabe. In response, Zimbabwe also did not participate in the Twenty20 World Cup hosted by England in 2009. After Zimbabwe withdrew from the tournament, Scotland got the opportunity at the last minute. This time, when Bangladesh decided not to play in India, Scotland got the same opportunity again after 17 years.

While Scotland was beaten by the Netherlands and Italy in the European qualifiers for the Twenty20 World Cup. Now Scotland will play group matches with Italy, Nepal, England and the West Indies. The ICC virtual meeting had excluded Bangladesh from the Twenty20 World Cup. Although other participants agreed to this, the Pakistan Cricket Board supported Bangladesh.

Both Pakistan and India have been refusing to play in each other's countries. That is why Pakistan has decided not to play in this Twenty20 World Cup in India. As per the schedule, the final will be held in Ahmedabad, India, but if Pakistan reaches the final, it will be held in Colombo, Sri Lanka. Both Bangladesh and Pakistan were unanimous, like Pakistan, Bangladesh should also play their matches in Sri Lanka and not in India in a 'hybrid' structure.

Pakistan had stated that it was reconsidering the ICC's decision to exclude Bangladesh from the competition. Pakistan has decided not to play India even though it is participating in the World Cup. Immediately after, it warned the ICC, saying, 'We expect the Pakistan Cricket Board to find a mutually acceptable solution. Which protects the interests of all stakeholders.'

Moments after the Pakistan government decided not to play India in the World Cup, Pakistan's U-19 team was defeated by India U-19 in the ongoing U-19 World Cup in South Africa. Pakistan has decided not to play India in the U-19, but not in the national team.

The ICC has also been criticized for the 'design' of the match schedule for India and Pakistan in the World Cup. If we leave out exceptions, India and Pakistan have been placed in the same group in most World Cups. After that, these two teams will meet again in the Super 'Eight', and the possibility of these two arch-rivals meeting in the final is strong.

 Playing India and Pakistan has been a great financial gain for the ICC due to the competition between them and the large 'fan base'. In such a situation, the ICC wants India and Pakistan to play not once, but three times in the World Cup. But this time, it has been confirmed that there will be no group stage match between India and Pakistan. Pakistan has not revealed anything about the later stage matches yet.

After Pakistan's decision, it will give a 'walkover' to the group stage match against India. The World Cup rules will also have a negative impact on the run rate of the team that leaves the match. In that case, it may be difficult for Pakistan to reach the Super 'Eight'. Pakistan is scheduled to play Netherlands on February 7, USA on February 10, and India on February 15 in Colombo. Pakistan will play Namibia in its final group match on February 18.