Pakistan To Skip Women’s World Cup 2025 Opening Ceremony In India, Matches Shifted To Colombo
Pakistan will skip the ICC Women’s World Cup 2025 opening ceremony in India; all their matches, including the India clash, will be played in Colombo due to political tensions.
Pakistan women’s cricket team to play all World Cup 2025 matches in Colombo, skipping India’s opening ceremony.
In a significant development ahead of the ICC Women’s World Cup 2025, reports suggest that Pakistan will not attend the tournament’s grand opening ceremony in Guwahati on September 30.
Pakistan To Miss Guwahati Ceremony
According to Geo Super, neither skipper Fatima Sana nor any representative from the Pakistan women’s cricket team will travel to India for the ceremony, where popular Indian playback singer Shreya Ghoshal is scheduled to perform. The opening event will precede the curtain-raiser clash between India and Sri Lanka, co-hosts of the competition.
Policy Behind The Move
The decision is believed to stem from a policy adopted by both India and Pakistan during the Champions Trophy buildup, under which the two nations will not cross borders for ICC tournaments over the next three years.
Pakistan’s Matches To Be Played In Colombo
Due to the ongoing political tensions, Pakistan will play all its fixtures at the R. Premadasa Stadium in Colombo, Sri Lanka. The team begins its campaign against Bangladesh on October 2 and will face arch-rivals India on October 5. Should Pakistan qualify, both the semi-final (October 29) and the final (November 2) will also be hosted in Colombo.
Road To Qualification
Pakistan sealed its World Cup spot by remaining unbeaten in the ICC Women’s ODI World Cup Qualifiers 2025, held on home soil earlier this year. The side won all five of its matches to secure direct qualification.
Pakistan Squad For ICC Women’s World Cup 2025
Fatima Sana (c), Muneeba Ali Siddiqui (vc), Aliya Riaz, Diana Baig, Eyman Fatima, Nashra Sundhu, Natalia Parvaiz, Omaima Sohail, Rameen Shamim, Sadaf Shamas, Sadia Iqbal, Shawaal Zulfiqar, Sidra Amin, Sidra Nawaz (wk), Syeda Aroob Shah.
Non-travelling reserves: Gull Feroza, Najiha Alvi, Tuba Hassan, Umm-e-Hani, Waheeda Akhtar.
Background
India has not toured Pakistan since 2008. Earlier this year, while Pakistan hosted the Champions Trophy, India refused to cross the border and played its matches at neutral venues. The same approach now continues with the Women’s World Cup.
